Story by Roz Edward
Images by Scott Hebert for Steed Media Service
Gabrielle Union was as excited as a kid at Christmas, as she and gal pal, fellow actress Essence Atkins, hurriedly made their way through Saturday afternoon shoppers to a Los Angeles theater to see Disney’s newest and relatively historic fairy tale release, The Princess and the Frog.
Union admitted that the she and her cohort threw caution to the wind earlier and indulged in a real American breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast for Union and corned beef hash for Atkins, before striking out on their Saturday errands.
“It’s really the intention … we tried and we walked in here and said we were going to have salad, but then we started smelling stuff and we lost our minds. So we’re going to rebound for dinner, have our salads and call it a day,” quips the star of All About Eva.
The cocoa-skinned beauty that is often cast as an uptight prima donna apparently is anything but. She is a contradiction of terms and roles. In Daddy’s Little Girls, she played opposite Idris Elba as an ambitious and demanding barrister, barking out orders and readily rendering judgment on any lesser achiever. In all About Eva, she is the overly maternal, meddling sister-in-law whose primary aim is to protect her younger siblings by annihilating male suitors.
And while there is a bit of life imitating art here (Union planned to become an attorney) she began acting much by happenstance while interning at a modeling agency during her college years.
“I had no intention of becoming an actress. I was interning at the [modeling] agency for college credit and I chose that internship because I thought it would be easy, not that I wanted to become Naomi Campbell or anything. … I was studying for the LSAT and this was a means to get four units of college credit without actually having to go to class,” Union relates matter-of-factly.
Regardless of her intentions, the industry experts recognized her innate ability to attract attention, and the would-be lawyer subsequently landed several roles in television and film, including the romantic comedy hits Love and Basketball and 10 Things I Hate About You.
A natural competitor, Union says that her extensive athletic background continues to fuel her competitive nature. “The way contracts are drawn up I can’t really do anything in the sports that I wanted to play,” laments Union. But she adds in a flash, “I still have that athletic drive … that competitive nature. When I go to the gym I tend to compete with other people on the treadmill although they don’t realize we’re racing. In my own mind we’re running a marathon and I’m winning.”
Union admits unapologetically that she sometimes finds the appropriate outlets and platforms for her talent by default. She and Kirsten Dunst found themselves cast in Bring It On after having been rejected for other high-profile roles and half-heartedly viewing their roles in what would become a cult classic as a consolation prize.
“I had no idea the movie was going to do as well as it did. … I take calculated risks in terms of character choice and projects. I risk my pride every time I audition … being told ‘no,’ ” she says thoughtfully. “The first time’s it’s shocking, it’s like asking someone do they want to dance and [they say] ‘No, hell no! Not only do I not want to dance, I don’t even want to see you in the club.” But, much to her credit the accomplished actress has gracefully mastered industry rejection and makes the best of it every time she’s at bat, whether she gets a hit or not.
“I tend to play strong characters. But it’s not like you’re going to see me playing a serial killer or anything crazy,” quips Union.
But it hasn’t been a cakewalk for Union, who at 19 was raped while working in a cleaners. The actress takes a stoic posture and adds a more authoritative pitch to her even tone when she talks about the assault. “It’s weird to say that having been in a number of rape crisis and rape survivor groups over the years, I realize — and it sounds almost sick to say — that I was lucky that my rape was a stranger rape and I was raped at work. Because it sort of absolved me of feeling of guilt and shame because all I did was go to work. A lot of women who are raped by people they know have to [endure] this added layer to the healing process and in the journey to recovery. I’m just glad I didn’t have that added obstacle,” Union says in retrospect and with deep humility.
Union implores women who are survivors of sexual assault to execute a recovery plan that includes some form of therapy.
“I immediately or within a couple of days [of the attack] got into intense therapy and I stayed in therapy for years. I joined support groups … and I participated in the criminal justice system so that I could make sure he got put away.”
During what would have typically been considered a fragile period, the actress was resolute in her pursuit for justice and used the time to channel her rage and sorrow to that end. “My boyfriend at the time was amazing. What a lot of people don’t realize is that when you’re raped, it’s not just you. It’s like your whole community, your whole family, everyone around you goes through it as well,” concludes Union. Her attacker was sentenced to 33 years in prison.
The cautious thespian was reluctant to talk about the current man in her life, but she was comfortable with saying that her 120-pound Mastiff American bulldog, Bubba, is her companion and protector.
Whether there is a Mr. Right or even a serious contender competing with Bubba for affection, Union maintains her flawless looks with a reasonable beauty regimen. “I drink a lot of water. I drink about a gallon of water a day. Great skin is recession-proof and more than half the battle is what you put into your body,” she says. “And of course I use Neutrogena products,” Union adds stepping into her Neutrogena spokeswoman role. “But as far as my fashion, L.A. is incredibly laid-back, so it’s a lot of jeans and Uggs and tank tops. … But for my red carpet look, I tend to go for more classic dresses that are more timeless. I just don’t want to look at a picture of myself 20 years from now and say, ‘What the hell?’ I like sexy but classic, she says with the certainty of a real Hollywood maven. “While I wear black basically in my everyday life, on the red carpet you’ll see me in a lot of color,” she says adding that she will host the BET Honors Award Show in and viewers should look forward to a number of dazzling wardrobe changes.
En route to The Princess and the Frog, Union announces that it’s approaching movie time, but that she wants to discuss one more item.
“What I’ve learned in life is that bad things happen to good people all of the time. It is how you respond to that adversity whether it is in your personal life or your professional life, or your family life. … Things happen all day so what are you going to do about it? Stop b——-!’ I got that philosophy from my older sister who when we were younger and my dog died, I started crying. My sister said ‘Crying is not going to bring your dog back. What are you going to do now? Let’s look at solutions.’ Apparently a tearful Union took that advice, albeit harsh, to heart and continues to draw on the lesson learned that day for moving forward, one foot in front of the other.
“We all have things to deal with and no one owns the right to adversity. We all have crosses to bear whether you’re a million-dollar athlete like Tiger Woods of a laid-off factory worker. Everyone has problems; how do you bounce back and deal with it? B——- about it just takes you further away from your goal and leading the life of happiness and joy that you should have,” Union says.
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