Life comes at you fast, which is certainly the case for Kevin Hart’s character Teddy in the new Will Packer-produced comedy, Night School. Teddy is a high school dropout, whose charisma and impressive salesman abilities have allowed him to create a precariously built life of luxury with the woman of his dreams, Lisa (Megalyn Echikunwoke). However, his world crumbles under his feet when he finds himself out of a job without a degree or any other skills to fall back on. Determined to keep up the facade of his luxe lifestyle, Teddy turns to a night school class and a no-nonsense teacher named Carrie (Tiffany Haddish) — with the hopes of finally earning his GED. With electrifying chemistry between Hart and Haddish and a fantastic supporting cast that includes Romany Malco, Keith David and Insecure’s Yvonne Orji, it’s clear that after Think Like A Man, Ride Along and The Wedding Ringer, the Hart/Packer machine is just getting the ball rolling.
Shortly before Night School's premiere at Urbanworld 2018, Shadow and Act sat down to chat with Packer, the film's director Malcolm D. Lee, Hart, and Haddish. After many years of friendship, the actors were finally able to work together on a film, something they talked about extensively when they were coming up through the comedy clubs of Los Angeles.
Hart and Packer had been working on the concept for Night School for quite some time, but the final script came together just as the frenzy surrounding Girls Trip was kicking into high gear.
"Kevin and I were developing," Packer revealed. "This is his first time producing a movie, so he and I produced it together. This is our seventh movie together, but we did not have a director. Malcolm and I had just finished Girls Trip, and I showed Kevin an early cut of the film. He loved it and said, 'Let's go get Malcolm Lee.'"
Continue reading at Shadow and Act.
