Nothing seemed to be funny for DeRay when he arrived in the Beverly Hills Hotel where we filmed for the “Trump vs Hollywood” documentary. The first thing he saw someone with a “Trump Gamechanger” T-shirt a few feet away to escort him to the filming site as he got out of his limo and put on his blue jacket for the interview. Not a good site for anyone who is not pro-Trump as a first impression. Not a good beginning at all, as he joined this project with an open mind.
Antoine DeRay Davis is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is the older brother of R&B singer Steph Jones. For the producer and director of the documentary, he was only one of the other 24 talented Americans, nothing more nothing less. In the end, no one could have said how this relationship could end up after such a peculiar beginning.
DeRay surely did not need to hear from the producer in the next 7 or 8 minutes’ walk to the bungalow anymore about Trump but he realized he had only one option: To walk out from this precarious situation right there and then. Yet, for some reason, DeRay did not do that. He endured the torturous journey to the filming site.
DeRay Davis with producer, Erbil Gunasti
DeRay with the director, Daphne Barak who also conducted the interviews with all 24 that participated in this documentary.
They’re one of the two people greeting him was the director. DeRay rushed in, saying that he is not “going to talk anything pro-Trump” there if that was the idea to bring him to the project. As if this was a pre-planned ambush, the director was no better than the producer, saying: “No we will handcuff you to the chair until you do.”
Only then DeRay realized the producer and the director may be in the same industry as him. No, they were not comedians but DeRay got a good laugh out of it. Yet, it was still hot there because the producer decided to put more wood on the fire for some reason, turning up the heat even after they stopped talking and having turned the microphone to DeRay during the filming.
No, DeRay was not tortured. He said what he wanted to say about “divided America”, “racism”, and “Trump persona” during the interview. He also complimented the producer and the director for their approach and comments. At least, that is what the producer and the director thought about his compliments. Maybe it was DeRay’s turn to become sarcastic like they have been to him all the way when he first arrived.
No one will ever know, right!
