Where Are They Now? The Cast of Boyz N The Hood

It blows my mind that John Singleton was only 23 when he was nominated for Best Director for his work on one of the best movies of the 1990s, Boyz N The Hood.  It’s not like I was growing up in gated communities with butlers and tennis courts, but it was nevertheless startling and, to a degree, educational to see for the first time life in the ghettos of South Central Los Angeles.  The cast of Boyz N The Hood all went on to have some pretty interesting and impressive careers, so let’s see what they’ve been up to since 1992.  After the jump, take a look at where the cast members of Boyz N The Hood are now.*

Laurence Fishburne as Furious Styles

The man who played a character with one of the coolest names ever (I dare you to come up with five cooler names than “Furious Styles;” it can’t be done) went on to a very successful and respected career in acting.  Perhaps Fishburne’s most well-known is that of Neo’s mentor in The Matrix Trilogy, Morpheus.  He continues to find work not only in film, but on stage, too: Fishburne was nominated for a Tony Award in 2007 for his role in “Thurgood.”  No big deal – he had already won a Tony in 1992.  Now give me the motherf*ckin’ gun, Tre!

Ice Cube as Doughboy

Man, Ice Cube has come a looong way from the jheri-curled, angry rapper that landed a role as Doughboy.  He’s continued to pump out some great rap albums (The Predator will always be one of my favorites), and has become a regular on the big screen, starring in movies such as Three Kings, The Friday movies, and the XxX sequel.  He’s probably not as family-friendly as Snoop Dogg, and his appearance in family movies is still kind of jarring to me.  I mean, this is a guy who had a “plan to break Tyson out of prison,” and now he’s in Are We There Yet?  Yikes.  Most impressive, to me, is that Cube wrote the hilarious Friday movies, as well as the underrated All About the Benjamins.  Cube is currently set to star in Janky Promoters, which he also wrote.

Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Tre Styles

Following Boyz N The Hood, Cuba’s career has been up and down to say the least.  His performance in Boyz is arguably the best out of all cast members, and he followed it up with some impressive performances in As Good as it Gets and especially Jerry Maguire, for which he received an Academy Award.  But then, for whatever reason, Cuba’s stock fell and he started doing movies like Rat Race, Boat Trip, and Radio.  You never go full retard, Cuba.  He ended up marrying his high school sweetheart and has three children with her, and hopefully his awesome portrayal of Nicky Barnes in American Gangster is a sign of things to come and a return to glory, not a break from the norm.

Morris Chestnut as Ricky Baker

Chestnut was great in Boyz, but he didn’t blow up like Cuba and Cube.  He’s had steady work in film, starring in movies such as The Brothers and Under Siege 2 with Steven Seagal, but he’s never had a role as memorable as that of Ricky Baker.  Although I did like him in Like Mike. It seems that Chestnut is going to be a fixture in movies with modest budgets with occasional appearances on television (like ER).  According to his website, women love him.  Well, duh.

Regina King as Shalika

Regina King, it seems, has been in EVERYTHING since 1992.  She even reunited with Cuba Gooding, Jr. in Jerry Maguire as his wife, and with Ice Cube in Friday as his sister.  King won a BET Award and an NAACP Award for her role in Ray in 2005.  Her most recent prominent role was that of the deceased President David Palmer’s sister in 24.   Last year, King was a prominent supporter of then-Senator Obama’s presidential campaign.  Other than a messy 2006 divorce, life has been pretty good for Regina King.

Nia Long as Brandi

Like Cube and King, Nia Long appeared in Friday, as the love interest of Craig (Cube), and she appeared in Are We There Yet? with – once again – Ice Cube.  Long has had a lot of work since Boyz, both in film and television (Boiler Room, Big Momma’s House, and The Fresh Prince of Bel Air), was voted one of People’s 50 Most Beautiful in 2000, and appeared in Kanye “gay fish” West’s video for “Touch the Sky.”  In 2004, Long won an NAACP Image Award for her performance on Third Watch.

Angela Bassett as Reva Devereaux

Can I just say that Angela Bassett intimidates me.  Don’t get me wrong; she’s hella sexy.  But she’s also friggin’ jacked.  Anyway, Bassett, like so many other of her fellow Boyz cast members, has had no trouble finding work after 1992.  Bassett was nominated for an Academy Award for her role as Tina Turner in What’s Love Got To Do With It? (she won the Golden Globe) and later starred in How Stella Got Her Groove Back.  She currently has a prominent role on ER.  She’s not just acting, though.  Bassett is set to make her directorial debut on the film United States, to be released in 2010.  In addition to her work in television and film, Bassett is an active ambassador of UNICEF.

Dedrick D. Gobert as Dooky

Gobert must have been a favorite of John Singleton’s, as he appeared in both Poetic Justice and Higher Learning after Boyz.  Unfortunately, the pacifier-toting young actor was shot to death just six days before his 23rd birthday.  According to an interview with John Singleton, Gobert was an avid street racer, and it was a Vietnamese guy that shot him.  That sucks.

Regi Green as Chris

Green hasn’t acted since Boyz N The Hood, but what he’s done is perhaps more impressive.  Green has become a part of Empowering Youth, a program designed to motivate and inspire young men and women across the country.  You can view his website and what he’s been doing with Empowering Youth by clicking HERE.

Baldwin C. Sykes as Monster

The imposing Baldwin C. Sykes – appropriately called “Monster” in Boyz – continues to act today, but it’s highly doubtful he’s been in anything you’d recognize, except for maybe South Central in 1992.  He’s credited as playing Bad Dude #2, Homeless Man, and Basketball Player, but at least he has been reunited with Morris Chestnut in Not Easily Broken.  “Yo, man, I want to go to college, too.  You think you can hook me up with a scholarship?”

Raymond D. Turner as Ferris

I know this isn’t Ferris; he’s the one driving the car.

If you remember Ferris, he was the dude in the Bulls ski-cap with the long hair whose boy shot Ricky with a shotgun.  He hasn’t done much since getting his cap peeled by Doughboy, but to his credit (or his agent’s credit?), he’s landed small roles on television shows such as MacGyver, Family Matters, Wings, and ER.  I just hope that he hasn’t cut his awesome hair.

You can also read:

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• Where Are They Now? The Cast of Doogie Howser
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