Vivica A. Fox Talks Holiday Cheer and Bonding With Co-Stars in VH1’s ‘A New Diva’s Christmas Carol’

There’s a fresh take on the classic A Christmas Carol story by Charles Dickens in A New Diva’s Christmas. In VH1’s latest film, Aphrodite, a singer known for her timeless love song, finds herself in despair as she no longer has an affinity for the song. Her hate for the single appears in all areas of her life. She’s now the meanest judge on Pop The Question, but her life changes when Brianna becomes the breakthrough contestant, showing her a different attitude to have.  Aphrodite reluctantly becomes her mentor and does everything possible to steer Brianna away from love songs. She is then visited by Christmas’ past, present, and future to try and shake her out of her funk and let love back in her life! 

Ashanti leads the pack alongside Vivica A. Fox, Eva Marcille, Robin Givens, Mckenzie Small, and Mel B. Idris Elba is an executive producer on the film. Ahead of the Dec. 14, PopCulture.com spoke with Fox about the film. She dished on some behind-the-scenes fun, and differences in filming this Christmas movie versus others, and what her holiday plans are this year. Check out the video interview above.

PC: The movie, I loved it. It was a star-studded cast. How was it working alongside the likes of Ashanti, Robin Givens and Mel B?

VF: Just amazing. Making A New Diva Christmas Carol was such an adventure. I’m going to tell you, we worked most mornings until 5:00, 6:00, 7:00 a.m. in the morning. So we worked long hours to get you this film, which we did in August. So this was a quick turnaround, especially for special effects, which are absolutely amazing.

A New Diva Christmas Carol is an updated version of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, but we took a little bit of a different spin on it. We had the spirits – which normally go past, present, future – not filmed separately. We all filmed together.

We sat through two hours of hair and makeup every day. So we really bonded together over going on trips on the weekend. We filmed in Ottawa, Canada. Eva was the fun girl. She’d be like, “Hey, let’s go to Montreal or let’s go to New York.” Robin Givens and I bonded over tennis. We both love tennis, so we were watching a lot of the US Open. Ashanti, she was just so busy, she really was. But to hear her sing live, which she has a lot of the soundtrack for the film, was a gift. I had no idea she was that good of a singer. I really didn’t.

PC: I always say that she doesn’t get the credit that she deserves as a vocalist. So I’m glad to hear you say that as well and-

VF: She just killed the national anthem this past week, right? Everybody was like, “Ashanti!”

PC: You also mentioned obviously that it’s a take on Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. I always like to see this reinvented. Why do you think that the story works so well and continues to be recreated time and time and again every year?

VF: People love Christmas movies. They’re really going to love this one because this got a whole bunch of Black girl magic sprinkled all over it. Believe it or not, I’ve known all of my co-stars and executive producers for years. This is the first time that we are all together making movie magic. So to see all of us come together and it’s the first time, to create that chemistry that naturally came for us was such a bonus.

PC: Now and this is not your first holiday film. We’ve seen you in several over the years. What is your favorite part about filming Christmas movies and what would you say is the difference in feeling when you’re filming a Christmas movie versus a different genre?

VF: I want to give you a little bit of a different spin on that. I’m going to tell you my least favorite part of filming.

PC: OK.

VF: We’re always filming in California and they trying to put all them layers of clothes on you and you got to act like it’s cold, but you’re filming in Southern California and it’s hot outside. That can be very difficult.

It helped for us that we were filming in Ottawa, Canada and the stage and the locations that the director, Rusty Cundieff, found made it easy to feel like that it was Christmas. We had special effects machines, they literally would build it on set, which was fun to escape. Then we created this bubble one time, which I thought was lovely. The fog scene, they had to guide us through a room that was filled with fog. So there was a lot of special effects magic. That was my favorite part.

PC: Now that the world is opening back up, people are out, people are outside again, we’re still coming out of the pandemic, but there’s always other stuff to deal with. But what are your plans for the holiday and what is your Christmas wish in 2022?

VF: Well, I have an annual Christmas ritual that I do. Interviewer:

PC: With your godchildren, right?

VF: Well, I do pictures with my godchildren tomorrow because my house is all nice and decorated. But I start off the day with my godson Christian for breakfast. Then I go to the Beverly Hot Springs and get a well-needed massage, and float in the waters. Then I go to my manager’s home, Lita Richardson, and binge-watch NBA games and have lunch. Then, I finish off the night with a good old Uno tournament and fish fry.

PC: Do you guys have the new Uno game? Uno Party for-

VF: No, we old school. We old school. And you can ask Eva. Eva thinks that I come up with my own Uno rules, but-

PC: Everybody thinks that everybody comes up with their own Uno rules. It’s a fight over Uno. Uno and Monopoly, it’s a whole fight.

VF: Wait a minute…Or Spades. Well, spades is kind of… but that’s when you see Black folks get the most attitude.