Friday (1995 film)

Friday is a 1995 American buddy comedy film directed by F. Gary Gray and written by Ice Cube and DJ Pooh. The first installment in the Friday trilogy, it stars Ice Cube, Chris Tucker, Nia Long, Tiny "Zeus" Lister Jr., Regina King, Anna Maria Horsford, Bernie Mac, and John Witherspoon. In the film, unemployed friends Craig Jones (Ice Cube) and Smokey (Tucker) face troubles after becoming indebted to a drug dealer while also contending with the neighborhood bully in South Central Los Angeles.

Friday
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	F. Gary Gray
Written by	Ice Cube DJ Pooh
Produced by	Patricia Charbonnet
Starring	Ice Cube Chris Tucker Nia Long Tiny "Zeus" Lister Jr. Regina King Anna Maria Horsford Bernie Mac John Witherspoon
Cinematography	Gerry Lively
Edited by	John Carter
Music by	Frank Fitzpatrick Hidden Faces
Production companies	New Line Productions Cube Vision
Distributed by	New Line Cinema
Release date	April 14, 1995 (1995-04-14)
Running time	91 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.5 million
Box office	$27.4 million

While developing Friday, Ice Cube and DJ Pooh sought to counteract the violent portrayal of the hood in film, and drew on personal experiences when writing the screenplay. Preparations for the film began after the pair were able to secure funding from New Line Cinema, who granted finance in exchange for a seasoned comedian in one of the lead roles; Ice Cube and DJ Pooh quickly settled on Tucker during casting. The film was Gray's film directorial debut, who was previously known as a music video director.

Friday was theatrically released in the United States on April 26, 1995, by New Line. It received positive reviews from critics, many of whom praised the comedic sequences, writing, and acting performances, particularly Tucker's: the film is considered his breakout role. The film was also a commercial success, grossing $27 million worldwide. It subsequently obtained a large cult following, inspiring several internet memes and pop-culture references and launched a media franchise, with the sequels Next Friday (2000) and Friday After Next (2002).

Plot

Craig Jones, a young man living in South Central Los Angeles, deals with the ups and downs of life, he has recently been fired from his job while collecting his wages. He confides in his mother to keep his firing a secret from his father but she tells him anyway, which leads to Willie giving him an ultimatum, get a job as a dog catcher or get kicked out come the first of the month. Craig is also smitten with Debbie, a friend of his sister, Dana but has an insanely jealous girlfriend, Joi that proves to be an obstacle. As Dana leaves for school and Willie leaves for work, Willie has one request for Craig, go out and look for a job. After an interruption from Smokey, (in which Craig shows off the new gun he bought) Craig then gets dressed and prepares for the day at hand.

Smokey is a small time drug peddler selling weed for big time drug dealer Big Worm. The only problem he has is that he spends his time smoking most of the product he’s supposed to be selling. He meets up with Big Worm and as he comes up short on his money, Big Worm warns him not to play with his “emotions” and drives off, leaving him to his vices.

Smokey then regroups with Craig on his front porch and they talk about how Craig lost his job the prior day and Red, a childhood friend to the duo, getting knocked out by Deebo, the Neighborhood Menace. Smokey also promises to get Craig high on the weed he’s supposed to be selling.

After Smokey notices how strict Craig’s parents are, they walk over to Smokey’s house so he can smoke his weed. On the way there they encounter Stanley, Craig’s uptight next door neighbor, urging them to stay off his grass, which falls on deaf ears. Smokey leaves his key at home which leads to him being scolded by his mother Joann, who then sends him to the store for cigarettes. After they return the duo gaze upon Mrs. Parker, the neighborhood cougar, who they fawn over before being interrupted by Craig’s mother, Betty, who’s headed off to work.

The duo then sit back on Craig’s front porch and Smokey begins to smoke a lot of Big Worm’s weed before being interrupted by Pastor Clever who tries to critique Smokey’s habit but is distracted by Mrs. Parker. As Hector almost hits Pastor Clever with his lowrider, he greets Smokey, who tells the story of what happened when he smoked with him. They then spot Mrs. Parker inviting Pastor Clever in her house. They then notice Lil Chris knocking over trash cans and give chase to him to no avail.

Deebo then rides into the neighborhood and forces Smokey into breaking into Stanley’s house while making Craig keep lookout. After Mr. Parker chases Pastor Clever away and Stanley comes back from running his errands, Smokey and Deebo come back to Craig’s house, having successfully stolen $200 from Stanley’s house which Deebo keeps for himself. Smokey resumes his habit of smoking weed and gets Craig to smoke with him. After a run in with the neighborhood mooch, Felisha, who is also Debbie’s sister, the duo go into Craig’s house to watch TV. Debbie comes by the house looking for Dana and hooks Smokey up with Rita, a girl claiming to look like Janet Jackson. Smokey also informs Debbie that Craig has a crush on her but she doesn’t believe him. She then leaves and Willie comes home from work, banishing the duo back to the front porch.

Big Worm arrives back in the neighborhood making his rounds, he attempts to get the rest of his money from Smokey, who incriminates Craig, which leads to Big Worm giving him an ultimatum, pay him his money by 10:00 PM or he’ll kill them. Craig is initially angry that he’s now involved with Big Worm but reluctantly helps out his friend.

Craig’s girlfriend, Joi arrives and his attempt to borrow money from her is ruined by Felisha. Craig then has a serious moment with Smokey, who is taking lightly the severity of Big Worm’s threat. Smokey then tells Craig he’s gonna try to talk to Big Worm and tell him that Craig had nothing to do with his weed being smoked. Craig goes in the house to receive his gun but Willie walks in on him and tells him to fight with his fists. He also tells Craig his uncle lost his life to gun violence, he then leaves Craig to ponder with his thoughts.

Red comes by to let Craig know that he and his former coworkers were joking on him at work and that he saw the tape. Hector then comes by again, wanting to buy some weed from Smokey. Smokey is resistant at first but reluctantly does when Craig has to remind him what’s at stake. As Smokey is walking back to the front of the house he spots Deebo coming back. So he and Craig hide their things, Red opting to tuck in his chain, which ends up getting snatched by Deebo before he rides off again. Red, distraught about his chain being snatched, gets in his car and drives off. Dana arrives soon after and so does Shana, her hairdresser.

Nightfall descends over the neighborhood and Rita arrives for her blind date with Smokey. Soon after Betty, comes home from work and both she and Craig go into the house, leaving Smokey outside to talk to Rita. Craig then attempts to borrow $200 from both his mother and his sister. Betty doesn’t feel comfortable giving Craig $200 because he just lost his job. Dana doesn’t give him the money but does tell their father that Craig is in trouble with Big Worm.

After Smokey is done with his blind date, he goes to Debbie’s house, scolding her for hooking him up with Rita. He notices Red’s bike on the lawn and is informed by Debbie that Deebo is in Felisha’s room sound asleep. Smokey see’s this opportunity and sneaks through Felisha’s bedroom window, trying to steal the money that they got from Stanley’s house earlier. He’s interrupted by Ezal, who inadvertently wakes Deebo up, leaving Smokey no choice but to leave empty handed.

Smokey goes back to Craig’s house to enlist his help and try to break in again but Deebo rides his bike past them. Smokey, feeling defeated and frustrated with the fact that nothing is going their way decides to go back home to his house. Lil Chris tries to scare and taunt them he then tries to pedal away on his bike but the duo gives chase and catches him. Smokey whips him with a belt, finally getting revenge for all the times he’s knocked their trash cans over. Smokey is celebrating but Craig notices a black car driving real slow towards them. They suspect a drive by and hide behind a tree before going back into Craig’s house.

Big Worm pages Smokey, who calls him right back but since he doesn’t have his money, Big Worm hangs up. Another hour goes by and Smokey tries to call Big Worm again but is interrupted by Willie who kicks Smokey out of the house. Craig grabs his gun from the dresser and prepares to escort Smokey back home. As they walk outside they notice a van in the middle of the street with its headlights off, the van then speeds up and Big Worm’s men start shooting at them. The duo makes a run for it and Craig shoots back, as Craig climbs over the roof of a house he tosses the gun to Smokey who lays down some cover and they get away safely. They hide in the bed of a truck as Big Worm’s men pass by looking for them.

Craig’s family and neighbors come outside of their homes after hearing the gunshots, Dana in particular asking neighbors of the whereabouts of her brother and Smokey. Debbie then drags Felisha along and confronts Deebo for hitting her sister, Deebo accused Felisha of Smokey’s attempted theft. As Craig and Smokey return to the neighborhood, Deebo hits Debbie.

Tired of being pushed around by Deebo and angered that he just hit Debbie, Craig finally stands up to him, first threatening him with his gun before being talked out of shooting him by Willie. He then fights Deebo, nearly losing before recovering and hitting Deebo with a brick and a trash can and finally knocking him out. Debbie comes and tends to Craig. Smokey takes the money that he and Deebo took from Stanley’s house earlier and goes back home. Red knocks Deebo back out and takes back his chain and his bike. Ezal takes his shoes and gives him his knife back. Craig sets up a time to go over to Debbie’s house the next day.

Craig has overcome all the days troubles except for finding a job. After Joi calls him trying to stir up trouble, he breaks up with her and goes to sleep. Smokey settles with Big Worm who tells him it was the principle of handling business. Smokey rebuffs, telling Big Worm to sell the weed himself the next time, as he announces that he is giving up drug dealing and going to rehabilitation. After hanging up, Smokey looks up, lights a joint, and closes the movie by breaking the fourth wall and telling the audience, "I was just bullshittin'! And you know this, man!"

Cast

• Ice Cube as Craig Jones
• Chris Tucker as Smokey
• Nia Long as Debbie
• Tiny "Zeus" Lister Jr. as Deebo
• John Witherspoon as Mr. Jones
• Anna Maria Horsford as Mrs. Jones
• Regina King as Dana Jones
• Paula Jai Parker as Joi
• Bernie Mac as Pastor Clever
• Angela Means as Felisha
• Faizon Love as Big Worm
• Anthony Johnson as Ezal
• Yvette Wilson as Rita
• Vickilyn Reynolds as Joann
• DJ Pooh as Red
• Tony Cox as Mr. Parker
• Kathleen Bradley as Mrs. Parker
• Demetrius Navarro as Hector
• Reynaldo Rey as Red's father
• Ronn Riser as Stanley
• Justin Revoner as Kid #1
• Meagan Good as Kid #2
• Terri J. Vaughn as China
• F. Gary Gray as Store employee
• James Bose Smith as Lil Chris
• LaWanda Page as Jehovah's Witness
• WC as Drive-by shooter
• Michael Clarke Duncan as Craps player (uncredited)

Production

Before Friday's release, movies such as Boyz n the Hood (also starring Ice Cube) and Colors portrayed life in the hood as violent and menacing. Ice Cube and DJ Pooh felt that these films did not portray the full picture of living in the hood, missing a more lighthearted element, with Ice Cube later saying, "we had fun in the hood. We used to trip off the neighborhood." Therefore, Cube and DJ Pooh decided to create a film that would portray that environment.

The script was only the third Ice Cube had ever written; the previous two were undeveloped. With the film, Ice Cube intended to make a "hood classic", one that could be "[watched] over and over and over again". According to Ice Cube, a majority of the film is autobiographical, with much of it being based on events that occurred in his neighborhood growing up. Smokey was based on DJ Pooh's stint as a drug dealer, while Craig being fired on his day off was based on Ice Cube's cousin, who was working as a delivery driver for United Parcel Service (UPS) at the time.

Prior to writing, the duo realized their inexperience as filmmakers was unlikely to attract major film studios, and floated the idea of self-financing the film. For a time, the idea of making the film in black and white to save money was considered, before the pair decided on approaching New Line Cinema about producing the film, who had achieved success with the House Party series; a film-type the duo aimed to replicate.

New Line Cinema agreed to finance the production, but requested that the role of Smokey, initially to be played by DJ Pooh, be played by someone with more experience. Chris Rock and Tommy Davidson were also considered for the role of Smokey. Ice Cube and Pooh immediately decided on Tucker, after discovering the comic through Def Comedy Jam. However, Tucker's first audition was poorly received, but was granted more time to try again at a later date. Tucker soon contacted Angela Means, aiming to work with her acting coach, but she invited him to a workshop session over dinner to help him secure the role. According to Means, "by the time that spaghetti was gone, Chris was Smokey."

Ice Cube was granted license to select the film's director, and decided on F. Gary Gray, who was a music video director. Gray had previously worked with Ice Cube on a number of occasions and was also aiming to establish a foothold in Hollywood through a short film. Ice Cube instead offered him the role for Friday, attracted to the fact that he and Gray had similar backgrounds, feeling the director would accurately capture the film's aesthetic.

Gray said that Ice Cube starring in a comedy "scared the shit out of me," as he doubted whether audiences would buy into Cube portraying a role so different from his public persona. Gray explained, "Ice Cube was the toughest man in America, and when you take someone [who] delivers hard-hitting social issues in hardcore gangsta rap, and who has a hardcore view on politics, you would never think comedy."

Release

Friday was released on April 26, 1995, in the United States, June 30, 1995, in the United Kingdom, and October 5, 1995, in Australia. The film saw a limited, theatrical re-release in honor of its 20th anniversary on April 20, 2015, for one night only.

Home media

The film was released on VHS on October 10, 1995, on DVD on March 2, 1999, and on Blu-ray on September 8, 2009.

Reception

Friday grossed $6,589,341 on its opening weekend debuting at #2 in the box office in 865 theaters, averaging $7,617 per theater. The film grossed $27,467,564 in North America, against a budget of $3.5 million.

Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 76% based on 29 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "What Friday might lack in taut construction or directorial flair, it more than makes up with its vibrant (albeit consistently crass) humor and the charming, energetic performances of its leads." Metacritic gives the film a score of 54 out of 100, based on 9 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Legacy

The film has obtained a large cult following since its release. A scene in the film is the source of the internet meme "Bye, Felicia"—which is a phrase meant to dismiss an inconsequential person. Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison and San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel are both nicknamed Deebo in reference to the character from the film.

Director Quentin Tarantino counted Friday as one of his 20 favorite movies from 1992 to 2009.

American rapper Kendrick Lamar referenced Deebo in his 2024 song Not Like Us, a diss track to Canadian rapper Drake.

Sequels

The film's success spawned two sequels: Next Friday (2000) and Friday After Next (2002). A fourth installment, tentatively titled Last Friday, has been in the works for several years. The film also inspired an animated series, titled Friday: The Animated Series, which aired in summer 2007.

The sequel Next Friday was the most successful in the franchise grossing a total of $59.8 million worldwide.

Soundtrack

Main article: Friday (soundtrack)

See also

• List of hood films

External links

• Friday at IMDb
• Friday at AllMovie