EXCLUSIVE DOCUMENT: Chris Rock's Response To Movie Lawsuit
Oct. 8 2009, Published 2:16 p.m. ET
Superstar comic Chris Rock has defended himself against a lawsuit that claimed he stole the idea for his new movie Good Hair.
Read Chris Rock’s Full Declaration
RadarOnline.com has obtained exclusive court papers from the Central District Of California (Western Division) where Rock defends himself against Regina Kimbell whose own documentary Nappy Roots covers the history of black hair.
In his declaration, Rock admits that he did meet with Kimbell for a private screening of her documentary at Paramount for research purposes for his own movie.
But he denies her claim that she showed him the documentary because somebody from his team told her: “I think we can help you”.
Rock states that Nappy Roots, unlike Good Hair, is more a historical take on the topic of black hair care rather than an entertainment one.
The comedian claims that he first got the idea for his ‘docu-comedy’ when he was playing a comedy gig in Atlanta 17 years ago.
EXCLUSIVE: Chris Rock Slapped With $5 Million Lawsuit Over Good Hair
He overheard some people talking about The Bronner Brothers Convention in a hotel elevator – the biggest black hair care convention in America – before visiting it for himself.
Around 8 to 10 years later he met with HBO executives Nancy Gellar and Nina Rosenstein to further discuss making the documentary before meeting Mr Bernard Bronner (of Bronner Brothers) in person in 2004 and once again in 2007.
“Only Your Hairdresser Knows For Sure”
Rock’s movie Good Hair focuses on three stylist as they prepare for the convention’s stylist competition which aims to find the best black hair stylist in America.
In researching the movie, the comic admits that he received a book from Tyra Banks on the topic while the producers, writers and himself, all watched various documentaries on the subject too.
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Regina Kimbell is trying to block the public release of Good Hair on October 9, 2009, which Rock claims would damage both his professional and personal reputation.
He denies the plaintiff’s claim of plagiarism and thievery and wishes the court to clear his name in connection with these accusations in her lawsuit.
