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# Ice Cube heads to the silver screen for the ‘kids’
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/movie-theater-hell-are-we-there-yet/
- Published: 2005-01-21T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T06:01:54.000Z
- Author: Dan Dunn
- Tags: Entertainment, Santa Monica, #archive-import

Though he entered the public consciousness by storming “Straight Outta Compton” with seminal gangsta-rap group NWA, for Ice Cube the road to Hollywood stardom has veered off in all different directions. Cube, whose birth name is O’Shea Jackson, began his film career in John Singleton’s critically acclaimed drama “Boyz n the Hood.” A few years later, he starred in the hit comedy “Friday,” followed by the action-thriller “Anaconda.” He’s tackled sci-fi in “Ghosts of Mars” and done a war movie, “Three Kings.” It seems the only genre Cube hadn’t attempted — until now — is a kids’ movie. In “Are We There Yet,” he stars as a randy single guy trying to impress a single mom by hanging with her two rambunctious kids. The star sat down recently with a group of inquisitive scribes.

QUESTION: Did you enjoy working with the kids on “Are We There Yet?” ICE CUBE: They were more professional than a lot of the adults I’ve worked with. They know their lines, they’re ready to go, very directable; they (act) bad in the movie, but they’re real good kids in real life.

Q: You’ve got children of your own. Do you ever encounter any of the behavioral problems that your character, Nick, does?

IC: My kids know what time it is with me. They know I’m firm, but fair. They usually don’t get too far out of line before I reel ‘em back in with “The Look.”

Q: Nick’s heavy into sports memorabilia. We hear you’ve got quite an impressive collection yourself.

IC: Being in this position, I get a chance to meet a lot of people I admire, a lot of my heroes from back in the day. Going to all-star games and stuff like that, I’ve got a chance to get jerseys and footballs signed. It’s the icing on the cake of my career that I can rub elbows with some of the sports figures that I’ve watched play and do their thing over the years.

Q: What are the centerpieces of your collection? IC: I’ve got a (Dallas) Cowboys helmet signed by Emmitt Smith that I’d never give up. I’ve got a jersey signed by Deion Sanders, and a basketball signed by all the greats — from Julius Erving to Oscar Robertson. I’m going to die with that in my casket.

Q: It must have been quite a journey going from rapping in NWA to starring in a family film such as this one.

IC: It’s been a nice progression, to show maturity and growth. You know, not to be stuck in the same thing. To let people know that you don’t have to end at the same place you started. I got four kids. I’ve seen every kid movie there is in life since 1985\. Now, it was time for me to try one, and to try and do a good one.

Q: You’re starring in the upcoming third installment in the “XXX” series. Were you prepared for the physical demands of the role?

IC: I don’t know if you’re ever ready for something like that. I was up to the challenge, but that didn’t (prevent) the scrapes and sprains. I got cut, burnt, bruised, sliced, tore a couple of things — tendons, you know, everything. Working on that movie, I felt like I was in the NFL or something. It’s going to be a hell of a movie, though. Real big — bigger than anything I’ve ever worked on.

Q: As one of the first rappers to successfully make the leap from music to film, what do you make of all the young guys who are doing it now?

IC: Rappers are getting a shot in the movies because we’re just an observant breed. To be a rapper, it’s like being a comedian, in order to give people something that they can connect with you have to be observant. So that translates to the screen — knowing situations, and knowing how people act. But we’re not doing nuthin’ new. Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley... they’ve all went from music to movies, so it ain’t like rappers are doing something that hasn’t been done before.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 21, 2005.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/012105.pdf?ref=smdp.com)