Bill Bellamy takes his slice of Paradise

(published on 01-12-2005)

“St. Maarten is real good piece of pie!”

Don't get it twisted. Just because you might not have heard from actor/comedian Bill Bellamy in a while does not mean he's been idle. He's had plenty on his plate since co-starring in the 2001 hit "The Brothers," such as starring in the hip, action-packed drama "Fastlane," which aired on Fox during their 2002-03 season. He just finished his new movie “Getting Played” with Carmen Electra, Vivica A. Fox and Stacey Dash and he’s now raking up frequent flier miles, before getting back to the set of another new production called “Neverwas.” While enjoying a well-needed vacation with his family in St. Maarten, Out ’n About got a chance to chat with the multi-talented actor/ comedian.

How are you enjoying your stay in St. Maarten so far?
It has been beautiful. I’ve been coming here for about 5 years. I really love the island, the people, the restaurants, the beaches, everything.

What made you decide to come to St. Maarten in the first place?
I came to St. Maarten in 1999 with FUBU. They have brought in a lot of celebrities here and I had never been to the island before. When I came here I was like, wow, this island is hot! I wanted to come back here and stay because I was only here for two and half days and I didn’t get a chance to do a lot. The following year I came back and stayed for two weeks and that’s when I was like, oh god! I love it!

Was it the party or the beaches?
It was everything. The beaches are beautiful, you can party, you can gamble, you can eat great food, you can chill, and you can also skip over to another island real fast if you want.

Have you been to any surrounding islands this time?
I’ve visited Anguilla and St. Barths. I still have to go to Saba.

Let’s talk about your new movie. First you taught us “How to be a player.” Are you “getting played” this time in your new movie?
Yyyes. It’s a good movie. It’s about a guy who’s going out with three girls and he’s thinking that these girls are really feeling him and he’s having a great day. Although he thinks everything is good and he has got all that female attention, these three ladies are playing him. They are making him think there’s more to it, but it’s just really about the sex. So it’s the girls being the player this time.

Did you ever get played in real life?
Yeah…It’s not a good thing. But in the movie it’s really funny. It’s funny to see a guy doing the stuff that girls would typically do and these girls are very strong women and trying to make sure they play me, but there’s a twist going on. It gets a little bit crazy in the end, but I don’t want to give away too much.

What can you tell me about your character in the movie?
My guy is a pretty fun guy. He’s a young successful real estate agent and he’s single. He’s on his way up in the world, but he just hasn’t found the right girl as yet. While landing a great deal on a property he goes out to celebrate and on the day that everything is going right, he gets a date with this girl and then another one with another girl and so on. He thinks he hit the lottery. He has a charm and a sense of humour about him. For me, he’s not like a bad dude and that’s cool. He’s not trying to be a playboy. He just happens to be put in that situation with these women, where he thinks they like him, put these girls have another agenda.

What was the best thing about working with Carmen Electra?
She was really a cool girl. A lot of guys probably look at her as sexy, which she is, but in real life she’s also really cool. She’s really down to earth. Vivica is also awesome. People are going to be blown away how beautiful Stacey Dash is, who a lot of people haven’t seen in a while. The guys are going to love the movie because of these women, and girls are gonna love it too, as they will go like “Yeah! It’s about time!”

A lot of comics and comic actors go into straight drama. Is your new movie project “Neverwas” a step into that direction?
Yeah, that one is dramatic. It’s an independent movie and it deals with Schizophrenia.

What is your role in it?
I play an intern at the hospital. He’s one of the only people outside of the doctor that sincerely cares about the welfare of the patients. He’s like their friend, he talks to them, he brings them little snacks, he reaches out to them, and he’s that kind of a guy, like an angel. I never had an opportunity to play a role where a person loves people so unconditionally, knowing that they are crazy to most people. He sees the good in each patient.

Was it difficult to go from a comedy into a serious drama?
It wouldn’t say it’s difficult. I connected with the character. I don’t care if it is comedy or dramatic, if you feel close to that character it’s not hard. I think I’m one of the few actors that can be very funny and then turn around and do something completely different, like Robin Williams, Tom Hanks and those guys have been able to do.

Is there any other movie genre you would like to try?
I want to do another action. I want to take it to the next level from my last show “Fastlane.” I’m going to do something that is exciting, like Bad Boys kinda thing. I want something with a lot of action and kick some booty and do at least three stunts by myself. I think that would be a lot of fun.

What do you prefer, movies or stand-ups?
Well, it depends. To be honest I love both of them, but my favourite thing in the world is to make people laugh. I think the stand-up is my heart and soul. Stand-up is how I got started and how everything just sort of came together from being funny. That’s why I went back to the stage. This year I have my comedy special coming out too. The year 2005 is going to be a fun year. I think I’ve been away for a year and a half, where people haven’t seen me, and they’re probably wondering what’s going on. Well, I got some really good stuff that I’m proud of that I think people would really enjoy.

Someone said that your comedy makes people think, is that also what you’re trying to achieve?
Yeah, but not in a preachy way. Through my comedy I feel it’s the most personal insight into who I am as a person. Because through my humour and the things that I say you get a chance to know what Bill Bellamy is really like, what he thinks about, what his feelings are and that kind of thing. It’s hard to do that when you’re doing a movie, because you’re playing a role. But in a stand-up it’s 100 per cent real. It’s the most honest thing that I’m doing.

What would you like to do with your career from this point forward?
I’m gonna keep building. I’m gonna produce some stuff and make some big movies. I just wanna make funny and entertaining projects. When people are going to the movies, I want them to be exciting and go “Oh my god, he’s so funny!” When you see “Getting played” I think everybody is going to talk about it. I got a chance to do so many things I like to do. I got to be really funny, I got to do physical stuff, and I got to do a love scene.

How much are we going to see of that scene?
It’s going to be good. I get to do some stuff in there. I do all my stunts in my love scene, so let everybody know, there’s no body double, it’s all me.

Can you give some advice to our young people here in the Caribbean who are dreaming of a career like yours?
You have to dream and when you dream, dream big. But ultimately you have to believe in your dreams and not just talk about it. You really got to believe in the things that you want to do and you can make them happen. If there’s any sole purpose of my life and my career, it’s that I’m here to inspire other people to dream or to wake them up. Somebody inspired me and that’s what I try to do, in that way that’s the God in what I do.

If you go back to the States, what would you say about St. Maarten if people ask you?
You have to visit. You have to drink it, eat it and live it. St Maarten has its own energy. I suggest everybody should take a trip down here and check out this island. It’s so small, but is has so much flavour. It’s like a real good piece of pie!

Bill Bellamy’s new movie will be released in springtime. For more information you can visit Bill’s website www.billbellamy.com.