The Big Picture

Tyler Perry’s latest, Mea Culpa, revives the erotic thriller genre with a steamy exploration of human desire.
Rowland & Rhodes star in this film as Mea Harper and Zyair Malloy, whose chemistry is undeniable even as dangerous truths surface.
Perry’s efficient 10-day shoot impressed actors, with Rowland filming her own stunts and getting fully immersed in the intense project.

In Tyler Perry’s latest, the writer-director is reviving the spicy erotic thriller genre with Netflix’s R-rated Mea Culpa. The movie stars Kelly Rowland (Think Like a Man), who also serves as a producer on the film, opposite Trevonte Rhodes (Moonlight) in a steamy exploration of the depths of human desire.

In Mea Culpa, Rowland is criminal defense attorney Mea Harper, who takes on the case of artist and suspected murderer, Zyair Malloy (Rhodes). Mea is determined to uncover the truth for her client, but Zyair is guarded in his testimonies while maintaining his innocence. Even as dangerous truths begin to surface, the chemistry and magnetism between the two is undeniable, and Mea finds herself ensnared in a deadly situation.

In this interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub, Rowland and Rhodes recount their experience on set with Perry and the unique way he works. Rowland reveals why she was scared of the project at first, and they talk about filming in 10 days, sticky sex scenes, and performing their own stunts. You can watch the full conversation in the video above, or you can read the transcript below.

Mea Culpa Follows an ambitious criminal defense attorney that, in his aspiration to be named partner, takes on a murder case of an artist.Release Date February 23, 2024 Cast Kelly Rowland , Trevante Rhodes , Nick Sagar , Sean Sagar , RonReaco Lee , Shannon Thornton , Angela Robinson , Kerry O’Malley , Connor Weil

COLLIDER: I like throwing a curveball at the beginning. For both of you, if someone has actually never seen anything you’ve done before, what is the first thing you’d like them watching and why?

KELLY ROWLAND: I’m sorry, but I want them to see this movie.

TREVANTE RHODES: That’s what I was about to say. I was about to say this one.

ROWLAND: I want them to see this movie!

RHODES: For obvious reasons.

What’s the Secret to Tyler Perry’s Success on Set?
Image via Tyler Perry Studios

One of the things about Tyler that I’ve heard from many people is that he likes to work very fast. What is that like as actors?

ROWLAND: I call him Lightning, by the way. I’ve never seen someone move so fast on set. It’s amazing. But I think it’s a really great way to learn, you know what I mean?

RHODES: Yes. And again, [gestures to Rowland] producer, I’ve produced, it’s incredibly efficient. Beyond efficient. And it’s just incredible to watch. So being a part of a ship that’s moving, not even just at that pace, but at that level of, I guess, congruency, it’s really impressive. You just wanna hop on board and pick up as much as you can and be as influential and as great as you can be.

‘Mea Culpa’ Pushes the Boundaries of Erotic Thrillers
Image via Netflix

For both of you, I feel like the erotic thriller used to be a staple of the ‘80s and ‘90s, but they’re not really made that much anymore. Is that one of the reasons why you were both so interested in the project, being part of that genre?

ROWLAND: For me, it was. It also scared me. I can’t lie. Because you think about ‘80s and ‘90s erotic thrillers and they were just really ultra sexy, and they left you with something to be inspired by, you know what I mean? I think that we took on that same mindset with an erotic thriller and wanting to up the ante in everything, from the crime to the sensuality of it, to it not just being an intimate scene, but what takes it to another level, to how does the story continue to unfold? There were so many elements we wanted to bring to it, for sure.

You guys have a pretty intimate sex scene covered in paint. It’s definitely not something I’ve seen before in that genre, so what was it like actually filming that, and were you nervous before stepping on set?

RHODES: You said “in that genre.” Have you seen people painting each other in anything else?

To be honest, no?

ROWLAND: [Laughs] “No,” question mark.

I needed to think about it, but I don’t think so. [Laughs]

RHODES: Good. I know you’ve seen a bunch of films.

I’ve definitely seen at least five.

ROWLAND: [Laughs] I mean, it was cold, it was sticky. Actually, it was slippery.

RHODES: It was slippery.

ROWLAND: It was slippery and cold.

Yeah, that’s not… No. [Laughs]

Tyler Perry Shot ‘Mea Culpa’ in 10 Days

When you saw the shooting schedule, what day did you have circled in terms of, “I can’t wait to film this,” and what day did you have circled in terms of — and maybe it’s that one — “Oh my god, we have to film this?”

ROWLAND: Mine was, “Oh, I hope that’s the last day,” because I wanted time to really spend with Trevante to be able to just have even more of a space with him. But he did it, like, towards the end.

RHODES: It was towards the end, but, I mean, it was like a 10-day shoot. I worked five days, so towards the end of the week.

Honest to god, it is crazy what is on screen.

RHODES: Yes. It’s crazy.

I don’t know how he does it.

RHODES: To go into further detail about that, because we shot a lot, we shot a lot, and so what you see is maybe half of what we shot. So all of that, Tyler is — that whole team, you can’t just say Tyler — the whole team is really impressive.

ROWLAND: Yeah. The way he’s already editing in his head is kind of like, are you freaking kidding me? It’s very impressive.

Completely. Did he tell you the whole arc and who did what, and how much was he saying, “Read the script. See if you can guess?”

ROWLAND: He said to read the script to me. He told me to read the script. But the way things just unfolded, even when you watched it all together, I was still blown away and I was still shocked. I know I did it, we did it on set, but it was still like, “Oh… Oh! Oh!” It was dope to experience it as a viewer.

RHODES: It kept you in tune.

Image via Netflix

I don’t want to do any spoilers, but the third act has some stuff, Kelly, and there’s a lot going on. There’s some action and whatnot. What was it like filming some of that stuff, and how much were you like, “Stunt person, please come in?”

RHODES: Did you have a stunt person?

ROWLAND: I had a stunt person. But it was so funny because Tyler kept laughing at me because he’d say, “Gunshot,” and then he’d, like, slap these bricks together just so I knew what it sounded like. He was like, “When you hear that you’re supposed to duck,” because I’d hear it and be like [gasps]. So he would often laugh at me. He’s like, “You hear pop, gunshot, you duck.” So, that was an anecdote from set. But it was exhausting, to be honest. I was absolutely tired at the end of the day because I was actually running, actually doing these stunts, and that was fun. It was fun. Tiring but fun.

Mea Culpa is now streaming on Netflix.

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