On October 23rd and 25th audiences will have the opportunity to celebrate the release of Britney Spears‘ memoir, “The Woman in Me,” with a global fan screening of Spears’ acting debut, in the 2002 film “Crossroads.” As director Tamra Davis told TheWrap, fans have Spears herself to thank for the movie returning to theaters.
“I’ve been working on trying to get distribution for the film for years. I’ve been calling my lawyers, everybody, but it was so tangled up,” Davis said. “It was Britney [who] called to make it happen. She was the one [who] personally called and she got it over to Sony and got it to be rereleased.”
“I meant nothing but one phone call from her and she made it happen,” Davis said.
That’s true, to an extent. A source close to the film said the project was a collaboration between the Sony Music premium content team, RCA, as well as Spears’ management team. “It was a labor of love for everyone involved,” the source said.
But, regardless of who actually did the outreach, Davis couldn’t be happier with the film returning to theaters and, for the first time, being available to stream. For Davis, who has directed other generation-defining films, like Adam Sandler’s “Billy Madison,” “Crossroads” holds a special place in her heart for its predominately female cast and production team.
“It was a film by women for women,” she said. And the film’s subject matter, according to the director, feels transgressive in this day and age, with plotlines involving rape and teen pregnancy. “I have to say, it made me really angry at any critic [who] would have criticized this beautiful, intimate moment for girls by girls. It made me go, ‘Who the hell are you mister dude, to say one word about our story. This is our story.’”But Davis explained she never intended to make movies for critics and that, if anything, her films prove that they can withstand the test of time. “These are classic movies that childhood and teenage years,” she said.
Davis was pulled into “Crossroads” due to her music video background. It was producer Ann Carli who asked Davis if she’d like to direct the 20-year-old Spears’ theatrical debut, to which Davis said no. “She wasn’t really the music I was listening to at the time,” said Davis. But the director was nudged to at least meet the singer, so Davis flew to Las Vegas where Spears was performing.
“I spent the day with her, watching her get ready, sitting with her, talking with her, watching how she controlled the room, all this activity. I fell in love. I fell in love with her,” Davis said. “I was like, this girl is controlling this whole thing in this sweet Southern style. She’s completely in control. Everybody’s doing exactly what she says. And if she doesn’t want it done, she says something in a very kind way and says, ‘Thank you very much,’ and the person gets escorted out of the room. She was running the whole operation.”
“Crossroads” returns to theaters on October 23 and 25. Britney Spears’ memoir hits shelves October 24.
