EXCLUSIVE: How Halle Berry Channeled Pent-Up Rage at Director into Latest Searing Role
Halle Berry channels rage at a director into a searing new role amid behind-the-scenes tensions.
March 13 2026, Published 6:30 a.m. ET
Spitfire Halle Berry channeled her long-suppressed anger at director Bryan Singer into her most recent role in the heist film Crime 101, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The 59-year-old Oscar winner portrays an insurance broker who teams up with a jewel thief played by Chris Hemsworth to get revenge on her boss after she's passed over for a promotion because she's a woman.
In a memorable tirade, her character vents her frustrations on the sexist exec.
Halle Berry Draws on Experience
Halle Berry said her role in the heist film 'Crime 101' reflects her personal experiences with sexism, ageism and racism in Hollywood.
The Catwoman star says the part appealed to her because of her personal experience battling ageism, sexism and racism in Hollywood.
"I thought, wow, I have an opportunity here to put in film something that I'm wildly passionate about personally," she explained.
For inspiration, she says she drew on an incident that happened during the filming of the 2003 X-Men sequel X2. Singer, 60, had berated the cast and crew, and Berry, who played the mutant Storm, decided to confront him.
Berry Blasts Director on Set
Berry recalled confronting director Bryan Singer during the filming of the 2003 'X-Men' sequel 'X2'
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"Everybody was mad, but they all said to me, 'Halle, you go tell 'em,' because they knew I would," she recalled. "And it's one of the greatest days on a set, telling someone who was wronging the entire crew, the entire cast, exactly where to go. And then I got on a plane and flew home with my X-Men suit on."
In his memoir, her X-Men costar Alan Cummings claimed Halle told the director he could "kiss my Black a--."
"That guy deserved it," Berry said.
A rep for Singer said of the alleged incident: "Nothing like that ever happened."
