‘Precious’ Star Gabourey Sidibe Talks Mariah, Mo’Nique, & Oprah

Inside midtown Manhattan’s Bistro Milano, television screens broadcast an Italian soccer game, around which the majority of servers and patrons have crowded to gasp, cheer, and clap in unity. But first-time actress Gabourey Sidibe, oblivious, drowns out the clatter with her frequent snort-punctuated laughter. “My roommate and I love Chipotle. It’s so awesome!” she says, chuckling. “We go around noon, and we’re like, How badass would it be if we got a Corona with our burrito -- we’re such derelicts.” Sidibe’s definition of what makes a derelict couldn’t be further from the abuse she suffers as the title character in Lee Daniel’s Precious. Alongside Mo’Nique as her bilious mother, Sidibe plays a teenager who is twice impregnated by her HIV-positive father. The film, a dark but hopeful story about urban poverty and spiritual endurance, was produced by Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, and will quite possibly garner Oscar nominations for its two leads. Here, the charming and spirited Sidibe explains the magic of being in the same room with Oprah, Mariah and, um, Steve Buscemi. (For more on Sidibe, check out the upcoming December/January issue of BlackBook -- this is just the gossipy stuff.)

Do you get star struck?
Totally! And by the most random celebrities. Steve Buscemi was at one of our premieres, and I was like, Holy shit! It’s Steve Buscemi! My big creep moment, however, came early on while filming Precious. Paula Patton, who stars in the film, is married to Robin Thicke, who I love. He’s so tall. He came to set and hugged me, like a good seven or eight times, and I nearly died. But I kept it cool. I kept it together. And then he left, and I started crying, like sobbing.

Do you remember the first time you met Oprah?
We were in a small room with low ceilings. All of the suits that are associated with this film were pushing me towards her. But I’m scared of her, so I’m shifting backwards. But she sees me, and keeps inching closer and closer. She can’t get to me fast enough, because she’s Oprah and everyone wants to talk to her. I’m the only idiot in the room trying to get away from her. Finally, I’m backed into a wall and she gets to me. She hugs me and then I see her mouth moving, but I hear nothing. All I remember is that her favorite color is green. I always wear purple and she was wearing purple one day, and I think I said, Oprah, stop stalking me! And she said, “Purple is a very pretty color on you. Everyone thinks it’s my favorite color, but really, it’s green.” That’s all I remember.

Did you have any preconceptions about your co-star Mariah Carey before this film? Had you seen Glitter?
Everyone makes fun of her for that, which is weird, because it’s like, it wasn’t supposed to win an Oscar anyway. The first time I saw her was at Lee Daniels’ apartment. She walked in and behind her I saw a trail of glitter and diamonds—but that’s my perception of her, because she’s Mariah. All that vanished on the second day of filming when I realized she’s just a girl. Maybe it helps that I saw her without makeup, wearing polyester clothing.