Dreamgirls (film)

In 1962 Detroit, car salesman Curtis Taylor Jr. meets a Black girl group called "The Dreamettes", consisting of lead singer Effie White and backup singers Deena Jones and Lorrell Robinson, at an R&B amateur talent show at the Detroit Theatre. Presenting himself as their new manager, he hires them as backup singers for Chitlin' Circuit R&B star Jimmy "Thunder" Early. He soon starts his own record label, Rainbow Records, out of his Cadillac dealership, appointing Effie's brother C.C. as head songwriter. When their first single "Cadillac Car" fails after white pop group "Dave and the Sweethearts" releases a cover version, Curtis, C.C., and their producer Wayne turn to payola to make "Jimmy Early & The Dreamettes" mainstream pop stars, beginning with their follow-up single "Steppin' to the Bad Side". Offstage, Effie falls in love with Curtis while the married Jimmy does likewise with Lorrell.

Jimmy's manager, Marty Madison, grows weary of Curtis' plans to make his client more pop-friendly and walks out. When Jimmy fails to connect with an all-white Miami Beach supper club audience, Curtis sends him out on the road alone, keeping The Dreamettes (whom he renames "The Dreams") behind to headline in his place. Feeling that Effie's plus size figure and distinctive, soulful voice will not attract white audiences, he appoints the slimmer, more conventionally attractive Deena as the new lead singer, as Deena's voice, although more basic and generic, is more marketable.

Aided by new songs and a new image, Curtis and C.C. transform The Dreams into a top-selling mainstream pop group. By 1965, however, Effie begins acting out, particularly when Curtis' affections also turn towards Deena. He eventually drops Effie, hiring his secretary Michelle Morris to replace her, beginning with their 1966 New Year's Eve debut in Las Vegas as "Deena Jones & the Dreams". Though Effie defiantly and desperately appeals to Curtis, he, C.C., and The Dreams abandon her, forging ahead to stardom. Effie learns she is pregnant with his child, but conceals the news.

By 1973, Effie has become an impoverished single mother living on welfare in Detroit with her young daughter Magic. To restart her music career, she appoints Marty as her manager and begins performing at a local nightclub. Meanwhile, Deena Jones & the Dreams have become superstars and Rainbow, now headquartered in Los Angeles, has become the biggest pop label in the nation. Curtis, now Deena's husband, pitches a film about Cleopatra to feature her in the title role. However, Deena clandestinely hopes the film will never be greenlit, wanting to pursue other acting gigs.

The following year, Jimmy has descended into drug addiction due to both Curtis' preoccupation with Deena and his rejection of Jimmy's politically-charged charity single "Patience", written by C.C., that he recorded with Lorrell. During a televised special of Rainbow's tenth anniversary, Jimmy abandons his soulful act to do an impromptu rap, which excites the audience, until he goes too far and drops his pants. Embarrassed, Curtis promptly drops him from the label and Lorrell ends their affair. Sometime later, C.C., who feels Curtis is undermining his songs' artistic merit by making them into disco music, quits the label. Jimmy soon dies from a heroin overdose, devastating Lorrell, who is barred from his funeral.

Disillusioned by Curtis' cold reaction to Jimmy's death, C.C. reconciles with Effie in Detroit, writing and producing her comeback single, "One Night Only". Just as it begins gaining local radio play, Curtis uses payola to force radio stations to play The Dreams' disco cover of the song. The plan crumbles, however, as Deena, who has been increasingly frustrated over Curtis' control of her career, discovers his schemes and contacts Effie, who arrives in Los Angeles with C.C., Marty, and a lawyer. Deena and Effie reconcile, with Effie telling her that Curtis is Magic's father. He begrudgingly agrees to nationally distribute Effie's version of "One Night Only" to avoid being reported to the FBI. Inspired by Effie's victory and finally seeing Curtis for who he truly is, Deena leaves him, vowing to start over.

In 1975, The Dreams give a farewell performance at the Detroit Theater, inviting Effie onstage to sing lead for the final song. Towards the end, Curtis approaches the front row, encounters Magic, and realizes she is his daughter.

• Jamie Foxx as Curtis Taylor Jr.; based upon Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr.,{{cite news|author-link=Joel Selvin |last=Selvin |first=Joel |url= https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/supreme-beings-what-dreamgirls-gets-right-2465737.php |date=December 10, 2006 |title=Supreme Beings: What 'Dreamgirls' Gets Right |work=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=August 3, 2024}} Curtis is a slick Cadillac dealer-turned-record executive who founds the Rainbow Records label and shows ruthless ambition in his quest to make his black artists household names with white audiences. At first romantically involved with Effie, Curtis takes a professional and personal interest in Deena after appointing her lead singer of the Dreams in Effie's place.
• Beyoncé Knowles as Deena Jones; based upon Motown star and lead Supremes member Diana Ross,{{cite web|last=Fotomat |first=Robert |date=2005 |url=http://oldies.about.com/b/2005/11/17/american-idols-jennifer-hudson-as-the-supremes-florence-ballard.htm |title=American Idol's Jennifer Hudson as the Supremes' Florence Ballard? |access-date=November 11, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205181446/http://oldies.about.com/b/2005/11/17/american-idols-jennifer-hudson-as-the-supremes-florence-ballard.htm |archive-date=December 5, 2007 |url-status=dead}} Deena is a very shy young woman who becomes a star after Curtis makes her lead singer of the Dreams. This, as well as her romantic involvement and later marriage to Curtis, draw Effie's ire, though Deena realizes over time she is a puppet for her controlling husband.
• Eddie Murphy as James (Jimmy) "Thunder" Early; inspired by R&B/soul singers such as James Brown, Jackie Wilson and Marvin Gaye, is a raucous performer on the Rainbow label engaged in an adulterous affair with Dreams member Lorrell. Curtis attempts to repackage Early as a pop-friendly balladeer. Jimmy's stardom fades as the Dreams' stardom rises, and as a result – he falls into depression (which he copes with through drug abuse).
• Danny Glover as Marty Madison, Jimmy's original manager before Curtis steps into the picture; Marty serves as both counsel and confidant to Jimmy, and later to Effie as well.
• Jennifer Hudson as Effie White; inspired by Supremes member Florence Ballard, Effie is a talented yet temperamental singer who suffers when Curtis, the man she loves, replaces her as lead singer of the Dreams and his love interest, and later drops her altogether. With the help of Jimmy's old manager Marty, Effie begins to resurrect her career a decade later, while raising her daughter Magic, the offspring of her union with Curtis.
• Anika Noni Rose as Lorrell Robinson; inspired by Supremes member Mary Wilson,{{cite web |date=26 December 2006 |last1=Miller |first1=Danny |title=Dreamgirls: Crossing Over...Again |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dreamgirls-crossing-overa_b_37180 |website=HuffPost }} is a good-natured background singer with the Dreams who falls deeply in love with the married Jimmy Early and becomes his mistress.
• Keith Robinson as Clarence Conrad (C.C.) White; inspired by Motown vice president, artist, producer, and songwriter Smokey Robinson,{{cite web|last=Chideya |first=Farai |website=NPR |date=December 21, 2006 |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6658391&ft=1&f=11 |title=Bill Condon Tells the Story Behind 'Dreamgirls' |access-date=January 23, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171113003406/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6658391&ft=1&f=11 |archive-date=November 13, 2017}} (audio interview) Effie's soft-spoken younger brother, a singer-songwriter, serves as the main songsmith for first the Dreams and later the entire Rainbow roster.
• Sharon Leal as Michelle Morris; based upon three Supremes members Cindy Birdsong, Lynda Laurence, and Susaye Greene,{{cite web|last=Wells |first=Duane |date=December 13, 2006 |url=http://www.gaywired.com/article.cfm?section=137&id=11992 |title=A Viewers Guide to Dreamgirls |website=GayWired.com |access-date=January 23, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703180715/http://www.gaywired.com/article.cfm?section=137&id=11992 |archive-date=July 3, 2009}} Curtis' secretary who replaces Effie in the Dreams and begins dating C.C.
• Hinton Battle as Wayne, a salesman at Curtis' Cadillac dealership who becomes Rainbow's first record producer and Curtis' henchman.
• Mariah I. Wilson as Magic White, Effie's daughter
• Yvette Cason as May, Deena's mother
• Ken Page (in his final film role) as Max Washington
• Michael-Leon Wooley as Tiny Joe Dixon
• Loretta Devine as Jazz Singer. Devine originated the role of Lorrell in the 1981 stage production.
• John Lithgow as Jerry Harris, a film producer looking to cast Deena
• John Krasinski as Sam Walsh, Jerry Harris' screenwriter/film director
• Esther Scott as Aunt Ethel, Curtis' aunt
• Bobby Slayton as Miami Comic
• Dawnn Lewis as Melba Early, James' wife
• Jaleel White as Talent Booker at the Detroit Theatre talent show
• Fatima Robinson (the film's choreographer) as a member of the Stepp Sisters
• Rory O'Malley as Dave
• Laura Bell Bundy as Sweetheart
• Cleo King as Janice
• Eddie Mekka as Club Manager
• Robert Cicchini as Nicky Cassaro
• Robert Curtis Brown as Technical Director
• Gregg Berger as Chicago Deejay
• Paul Kirby as Promo Film Narrator (voice)
• Yvette Nicole Brown as Curtis' Secretary

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1. "I'm Lookin' for Something" – The Step Sisters
2. "Goin Downtown" – Little Albert & the Tru-Tones
3. "Takin the Long Way Home" – Tiny Joe Dixon
4. "Move" – Dreamettes
5. "Fake Your Way To The Top" – James "Thunder" Early & The Dreamettes
6. "Cadillac Car" – James Thunder Early & The Dreamettes
7. "Cadillac Car (Reprise)" – Dave & The Sweethearts
8. "Steppin To The Bad Side" – Curtis Taylor Jr., Wayne, C.C. White, Jimmy Early & The Dreamettes and Chorus
9. "Love You I Do" – Effie White
10. "I Want You Baby" – Jimmy Early & The Dreamettes
11. "Family" – C.C. White, Effie White, Curtis Taylor Jr., Deena Jones, and Lorrell Robinson
12. "Dreamgirls" – The Dreams
13. "Heavy" – The Dreams
14. "It's All Over" – Effie White, Deena Jones, Curtis Taylor Jr., C.C. White, Lorrell Robinson, and Michelle Morris
15. "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" – Effie White
16. "Love Love Me Baby" - Deena Jones & The Dreams

| style="width:50%; vertical-align:top;"|

1. "I'm Somebody" – Deena Jones & the Dreams
2. "When I First Saw You" – Curtis Taylor Jr.
3. "Patience" – Jimmy Early, Lorrell Robinson, C.C. White, and Chorus
4. "I Am Changing" – Effie White
5. "Perfect World" – The Campbell Connection
6. "I Meant You No Harm/Jimmy's Rap" – Jimmy Early
7. "Lorrell Loves Jimmy" – Lorrell Robinson
8. "Family (Reprise)" – Deena Jones & the Dreams
9. "Jimmy Don't Crawl" – Jimmy Early (Director's Cut only)
10. "Step on Over" – Deena Jones & the Dreams
11. "I Miss You Old Friend" – Jazz Singer (Loretta Devine)
12. "Effie, Sing My Song" – C.C. White and Effie White (Director's Cut only){{cite web|last=Horowitz |first=Joshua |date=December 7, 2006 |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1547452/story.jhtml#/news/articles/1547452/story.jhtml |title=Oscar file: 'Dreamgirls' Director Isn't Lost in Award-Buzz Dream World |website=MTV News |access-date=December 10, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071001043922/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1547452/story.jhtml#/news/articles/1547452/story.jhtml |archive-date=October 1, 2007}}
13. "One Night Only" – Effie White
14. "One Night Only (Disco)" – Deena Jones & the Dreams
15. "Listen" – Deena Jones
16. "Effie White's Gonna Win" - Effie White
17. "Hard to Say Goodbye" – Deena Jones & the Dreams
18. "Dreamgirls (Finale)" – The Dreams

|}

In the 1980s and 1990s, several attempts were made to produce a film adaptation of Dreamgirls, a Broadway musical loosely based upon the story of The Supremes and Motown Records, which won six Tony Awards in 1982. David Geffen, the stage musical's co-financier, retained the film rights to Dreamgirls and turned down many offers to adapt the story for the screen. He cited a need to preserve the integrity of Dreamgirls stage director Michael Bennett's work after his death in 1987.{{cite news|last=Marr |first=Melissa |date=December 8, 2006 |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06342/744656-254.stm |title=After 'Dreamgirls', Geffen says goodbye to movies |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=December 9, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070225183741/http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06342/744656-254.stm |archive-date=February 25, 2007 }} That same year, Geffen, who ran his Warner Bros.-associated Geffen Pictures film production company at the time, began talks with Broadway lyricist and producer Howard Ashman to adapt it as a star vehicle for Whitney Houston, who was to portray Deena. The production ran into problems when Houston wanted to sing both Deena and Effie's songs (particularly "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going"), along with Ashman's death in 1991, and the film was eventually abandoned.{{cite web|last=Hill |first=Jeremy |url=http://www.graiai.com/dreamgirls/ |website=graiai.com |title=Dreamgirls: Your Virtual Coffee Table Book of the Music |access-date=November 10, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924183738/http://www.graiai.com/dreamgirls/ |archive-date=September 24, 2008 }}

When Geffen co-founded DreamWorks in 1994 and dissolved Geffen Pictures, the rights to Dreamgirls remained with Warner Bros. Warner planned to go ahead with the film with director Joel Schumacher and screenwriter Tina Andrews in the late 1990s, following the success of Touchstone Pictures's Tina Turner biopic What's Love Got to Do with It. Schumacher planned to have Lauryn Hill{{cite web|title=Fugees' Lauryn Hill Eyed For "Dreamgirls" |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1429235/19980716/fugees.jhtml |work=MTV News |access-date=17 May 2020|date=16 July 1998|archive-date=August 20, 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030820010531/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1429235/19980716/fugees.jhtml|url-status=dead }} portray Deena and Kelly Price play Effie. After Warner's Frankie Lymon biopic Why Do Fools Fall in Love failed at the box office, the studio shut down development on Dreamgirls.

DreamWorks' Dreamgirls adaptation came about after the film version of the Broadway musical Chicago was a success at both the box office and the Academy Awards. Screenwriter and director Bill Condon, who wrote Chicago{{'}}s screenplay, met producer Laurence Mark at a Hollywood holiday party in late 2002, where the two discussed a long-held "dream project" of Condon's – adapting Dreamgirls for the screen.{{Cite episode| title = "Dreamgirls" with Writer/Director Bill Condon| url = http://www.kcet.org/socal/cinema_series/dreamgirls-with-writerdirector-bill-condon.html| series = KCET Cinema Series| network = PBS| station = KCET| location = Los Angeles, California| airdate = 2006-12-06| minutes = 2:34| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110621232320/http://www.kcet.org/socal/cinema_series/dreamgirls-with-writerdirector-bill-condon.html| archive-date = June 21, 2011| df = mdy-all}} The two had dinner with Geffen and successfully convinced him to allow Condon to write a screenplay for Dreamgirls.{{Cite news|last=Ulmer |first=James |date=September 10, 2006 |work=The New York Times |access-date=November 11, 2006 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/10/movies/moviesspecial/10ulme.html |title=After Conquering 'Chicago,' It's On to Motown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130322045332/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/10/movies/moviesspecial/10ulme.html |archive-date=March 22, 2013 |url-status=live}} Condon did not start work on the Dreamgirls script until after making the Alfred Kinsey biographical film Kinsey (2004). After sending Geffen the first draft of his screenplay in January 2005, Condon's adaptation of Dreamgirls was greenlit.

While much of the stage musical's story remains intact, a number of significant changes were made. The Dreams' hometown—the setting for much of the action—was moved from Chicago to Detroit, the real-life hometown of The Supremes and Motown Records. The roles of many of the characters were related more closely to their real-life inspirations, following a suggestion by Geffen.

Warner Bros. had retained the film rights to Dreamgirls, and agreed to co-produce with DreamWorks. However, after casting was completed, the film was budgeted at $73 million and Warner backed out of the production. Geffen, taking the role of co-producer, brought Paramount Pictures in to co-finance and release Dreamgirls. During the course of production, Paramount's parent company, Viacom, would purchase DreamWorks, aligning the two studios under one umbrella (and giving the senior studio US distribution rights on behalf of DreamWorks). The completed film had a production budget of $75 million, making Dreamgirls the most expensive film with an all-black starring cast in cinema history.Gottfried, Marvin in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|p=[https://archive.org/details/dreamgirls00morr/page/15/mode/1up 15]}}

Mark and Condon began pre-production with the intentions of casting Jamie Foxx and Eddie Murphy, both actors with record industry experience, as Curtis Taylor Jr. and James "Thunder" Early, respectively. When offered the part of Curtis, Foxx initially declined because DreamWorks could not meet his salary demands. Denzel Washington, Will Smith, and Terrence Howard were among the other actors also approached to play Curtis.{{cite magazine|last=Johnson |first=Pamela K. |date=August 2005 |url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1264/is_4_36/ai_n15340948 |title=Howard's Homecoming |magazine=Essence |access-date=December 14, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070222221832/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1264/is_4_36/ai_n15340948 |archive-date=February 22, 2007}} Murphy, on the other hand, accepted the role of Jimmy Early after being convinced to do so by DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg.

While Condon had intended to cast relatively unknown actresses as all three Dreams, R&B singer Beyoncé Knowles lobbied for the part of Deena Jones, and was cast after a successful screen test. Upon learning that Knowles and Murphy had signed on, Foxx rethought his original decision and accepted the Curtis role at DreamWorks' lower salary.{{cite magazine|last=Daly |first=Steve |date=November 10, 2006 |url=https://ew.com/article/2006/11/30/dreamgirls-holiday-movie-center-stage/ |title=Chasing Down the 'Dreamgirls' |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=November 11, 2006}}

R&B star Usher was to have been cast as C.C. White,{{cite web|url=http://www.contactmusic.com/news-article/usher-looks-set-for-dreamgirls |title=Usher Looks Set for 'Dreamgirls' |date=May 15, 2005 |website=Contactmusic.com |access-date=November 1, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130617110255/http://www.contactmusic.com/news-article/usher-looks-set-for-dreamgirls |archive-date=June 17, 2013 |url-status=live}} but contract negotiations failed; Usher was unable to dedicate half a year to the project. André 3000 of Outkast was also offered the role, but declined.{{cite web|url=http://movies.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1040009.php |title=Andre '3000' Benjamin has turned down a role in Dreamgirls |date=August 9, 2005 |website=Monsters and Critics |access-date=January 23, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012155520/http://movies.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1040009.php |archive-date=October 12, 2007 }} After briefly considering R&B singer Omarion,{{cite web|url=http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur22067.cfm |date=August 30, 2005 |title=Bits: Ursh outta 'Dreamgirls'? |website=EURweb.com |access-date=December 17, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806020337/http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur22067.cfm |archive-date=August 6, 2009}} singer/actor Keith Robinson was eventually cast in the role.{{cite web|last=Kersey |first=Tanya |date=November 23, 2005 |url=http://www.blacktalentnews.com/artman/publish/article_339.shtml |title='Dreamgirls' Film Cast Finally Shaping Up; Usher and Fantasia Are Out, Keith Robinson and Jennifer Hudson Are In |website=BlackTalentNews.com |access-date=December 3, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090107044710/http://www.blacktalentnews.com/artman/publish/article_339.shtml |archive-date=January 7, 2009}}

Anika Noni Rose, a Broadway veteran and a Tony Award winner, won the part of Lorrell Robinson after an extensive auditioning process. Rose, significantly shorter than most of her co-stars at five feet and two inches (157 cm), was required to wear (and dance in) four and five-inch (127 mm) heels for much of the picture, which she later stated caused her discomfort.

The most crucial casting decision involved the role of Effie White, the emotional center of the story.(2007). Building the Dream (Documentary from Dreamgirls: 2 Disc Showstopper Edition). DreamWorks Home Entertainment/Paramount Pictures. The filmmakers insisted on casting a relative unknown in the role, paralleling the casting of then-21-year-old Jennifer Holliday in that role for the original Broadway production. A total of 783 singing actresses auditioned for the role of Effie White, among them American Idol alumnae Fantasia Barrino and Jennifer Hudson, former Disney star Raven-Symoné, and Broadway stars Capathia Jenkins and Patina Miller. Community actress Yvette Nicole Brown was also in the running for the role but was eventually cast as the legal secretary to Foxx's character.{{cite web|last=Murray |first=Jawn |title=BVBuzz |url=http://www.blackvoices.com/black_entertainment/bvbuzzcanvas/_a/dec-25-2006/20061221143709990001 |work=AOL Black Voices |access-date=18 May 2010 |date=26 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100329063907/http://www.blackvoices.com/black_entertainment/bvbuzzcanvas/_a/dec-25-2006/20061221143709990001 |archive-date=March 29, 2010 }} Though Barrino emerged as an early frontrunner for the part,{{sfn|LaPorte|2010|pp=[https://archive.org/details/menwhowouldbekin00lapo/page/407 407–413]}} Hudson was eventually selected to play Effie, leading Barrino to telephone Hudson and jokingly complain that Hudson "stole [Barrino's] part."{{cite magazine|url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_23_108/ai_n15929105 |title='American Idol' finalist Jennifer Hudson gets lead role in 'Dreamgirls' movie |date=December 5, 2005 |magazine=Jet |access-date=March 3, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012161143/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_23_108/ai_n15929105 |archive-date=October 12, 2007}}{{cite web|last=O'Neil |first=Tom |date=August 15, 2006 |url=http://goldderby.latimes.com/awards_goldderby/2006/08/oscars_dreamgir.html |title=Dreamgirl Hudson is frontrunner for supporting Oscar |website=The Envelope |publisher=Los Angeles Times |access-date=November 11, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131218124610/http://goldderby.latimes.com/awards_goldderby/2006/08/oscars_dreamgir.html |archive-date=December 18, 2013}}{{cite magazine|last=Fonseca |first=Nicholas |date=December 8, 2006 |url=https://ew.com/article/2007/01/08/fantasias-second-act/ |title=Fantasia's Second Act |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=January 21, 2008}}

Hudson was required to gain twenty pounds for the role,{{cite web|last1=Joyner |first1=Tom |last2=Wilkes |first2=Sybil |last3=Brown |first3=J. Anthony |date=December 12, 2006 |url=http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/holidays06/dreamgirls |title=Audio interview with Jennifer Hudson |website=The Tom Joyner Morning Show |location=Dallas, TX |publisher=REACH Media, Inc. |access-date=December 16, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015120515/http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/holidays06/dreamgirls |archive-date=October 15, 2008}} which marked her debut film performance. In casting Hudson, Condon recalled that he initially was not confident he'd made the right decision, but instinctively cast Hudson after she'd auditioned several times because he "just didn't believe any of the others."{{cite web |title=Risky Business: Directors Guild Meet the Nominees Panel |url=http://riskybusiness.hollywoodreporter.com/2007/02/04/directors_guild/#more-5412 |archive-date=25 January 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130125173310/http://riskybusiness.hollywoodreporter.com/2007/02/04/directors_guild/%23more-5412|url-status=dead|work=The Hollywood Reporter|access-date=19 May 2010|date=4 February 2007}}

After Hudson was cast in November 2005, the Dreamgirls cast began extensive rehearsals with Condon and choreographers Fatima Robinson and Aakomon "AJ" Jones, veterans of the music video industry.{{cite news|last=Bloom |first=Julie |date=November 27, 2006 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/27/arts/27iht-dreamgirls.3682342.html |title=Musical Movies: 'Dreamgirls' choreographer brings hip-hop moves to Motown |work=The New York Times |access-date=3 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080226190417/http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/11/27/features/dreamgirls.php |archive-date=February 26, 2008 |url-status=live}} Meanwhile, the music production crew began work with the actors and studio musicians recording the songs for the film. Although rehearsals ended just before Christmas 2005, Condon called Hudson back for a week of one-on-one rehearsals, to help her more fully become the "diva" character of Effie. Hudson was required to be rude and come in late both on set and off, and she and Condon went over Effie's lines and scenes throughout the week.

Loretta Devine, who played Lorrell in the original Broadway production, has a cameo as a jazz singer who performs the song "I Miss You Old Friend." Another Dreamgirls veteran present in the film is Hinton Battle, who was a summer replacement for James "Thunder" Early onstage and here portrays Curtis' aide-de-camp Wayne.

Principal photography began January 6, 2006 with the filming of dance footage for the first half of "Steppin' to the Bad Side," footage later deleted from the film.Coker, Cheo Hodari in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|p=178}} The film was primarily shot on soundstages at the Los Angeles Center Studios and on location in the Los Angeles area, with some second unit footage shot in Detroit, Miami, and New York City. The award-winning Broadway lighting team of Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer were brought in to create theatrical lighting techniques for the film's musical numbers.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dreamgirls/about.php |title=Production notes for Dreamgirls |website=Rotten Tomatoes |date=2006 |access-date=December 16, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071218194750/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dreamgirls/about.php |archive-date=December 18, 2007}}

Beyoncé Knowles elected to lose weight to give the mature Deena Jones of the 1970s a different look than the younger version of the character. By sticking to a highly publicized diet of water, lemons, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper (also known as the Master Cleanse), Knowles rapidly lost twenty pounds, which she gained back once production ended.{{cite news|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=7&entry_id=5386 |date=May 22, 2006 |title=Beyoncé Loses Weight on a Water Diet |work=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=December 16, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012162259/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=7&entry_id=5386 |archive-date=October 12, 2007}}

Shooting was completed in the early-morning hours of April 8, 2006, after four days were spent shooting Jennifer Hudson's musical number "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", which had purposefully been saved until the end of the shoot. Originally scheduled to be shot in one day, Condon was forced to ask for extra time and money to finish shooting the "And I Am Telling You" scene, as Hudson's voice would give out after four hours of shooting the musical number, and she was unable to plausibly lip-sync while hoarse. The scene was felt by everyone involved to be pivotal to the film, as "And I Am Telling You" was Jennifer Holliday's show-stopping number in the original Broadway musical.

{{main|Dreamgirls: Music from the Motion Picture}}

{{Listen

|title = "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going"

|description = Performed by Jennifer Hudson.{{ffdc|log=2023 March 8|date=April 2023}}

}}

Dreamgirls musical supervisors Randy Spendlove and Matt Sullivan hired R&B production team The Underdogs — Harvey Mason Jr. and Damon Thomas — to restructure and rearrange the Henry Krieger/Tom Eyen Dreamgirls score so that it better reflected its proper time period, yet also reflected then-modern R&B/pop sensibilities.Coker, Cheo Hodari in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|pp=[https://archive.org/details/dreamgirls00morr/page/166/mode/2up 166–167]}} During post-production, composer Stephen Trask was contracted to provide additional score material for the film.{{cite web|last=Goldwasser |first=Dan |url=http://www.soundtrack.net/news/article/?id=848 |title=Stephen Trask scores Dreamgirls |website=Soundtrack.net |access-date=2007-02-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070207084742/http://www.soundtrack.net/news/article/?id=848 |archive-date=February 7, 2007 |url-status=dead}} Several musical numbers from the Broadway score were not included in the film version, in particular Lorrell's solo "Ain't No Party".{{cite news|last=Haun|first=Harry|title=Condon, Bill: Legendary Motown Musical Destined for the Top of the Charts (1/07)|url=http://www.filmjournal.com/condon-bill|access-date=May 1, 2016|newspaper=Film Journal International|date=January 1, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509164843/http://www.filmjournal.com/condon-bill|archive-date=May 9, 2016|url-status=dead}}

Four new songs were added for the film: "Love You I Do", "Patience", "Perfect World," and "Listen." All of the new songs feature music composed by original Dreamgirls stage composer Henry Krieger. With Tom Eyen having died in 1991,{{cite news|last=Buckley |first=Michael |title=Stage to Screens: "Dreamgirls" Composer Krieger and Co-Star Rose; Plus David Warren |url=http://www.playbill.com/features/article/104277-STAGE-TO-SCREENS-Dreamgirls-Composer-Krieger-and-Co-Star-Rose-Plus-David-Warren |access-date=17 May 2010 |newspaper=Playbill |date=17 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120910090438/http://www.playbill.com/features/article/104277-STAGE-TO-SCREENS-Dreamgirls-Composer-Krieger-and-Co-Star-Rose-Plus-David-Warren |archive-date=September 10, 2012 |df=mdy }} various lyricists were brought in by Krieger to co-author the new songs. "Love You I Do," with lyrics by Siedah Garrett, is performed in the film by Effie during a rehearsal at the Rainbow Records studio. Willie Reale wrote the lyrics for "Patience," a song performed in the film by Jimmy, Lorrell, C.C., and a gospel choir, as the characters attempt to record a message song for Jimmy. "Perfect World," also featuring lyrics by Garrett, is performed during the Rainbow 10th anniversary special sequence by Jackson 5 doppelgängers The Campbell Connection. "Listen", with additional music by Scott Cutler and Beyoncé, and lyrics by Anne Preven, is presented as a defining moment for Deena's character late in the film.

After preview screenings during the summer of 2006, several minutes worth of musical footage were deleted from the film due to negative audience reactions to the amount of music. Among this footage was one whole musical number, C.C. and Effie's sung reunion "Effie, Sing My Song", which was replaced with an alternative spoken version.

The Dreamgirls: Music from the Motion Picture soundtrack album was released on December 5 by Music World Entertainment/Columbia Records, in both a single-disc version containing highlights and a double-disc "Deluxe Version" containing all of the film's songs. The single-disc version of the soundtrack peaked at number-one on the Billboard 200 during a slow sales week in early January 2007.{{cite magazine|last=Hasty |first=Katie |date=January 10, 2007 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=January 10, 2007 |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1063394/dreamgirls-takes-no-1-in-sluggish-sales-week |title='Dreamgirls' Takes No. 1 In Sluggish Sales Week |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001201755/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1063394/dreamgirls-takes-no-1-in-sluggish-sales-week |archive-date=October 1, 2020}} "Listen" was the first official single from the soundtrack, supported by a music video featuring Beyoncé. "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" was the Dreamgirls soundtrack's second single. Though a music video with all-original footage was once planned,{{cite web|url=http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur30733.cfm |title=Hudson to Upgrade "And I Am Telling You" Video: 'Dreamgirls' director Condon wants clip to attract wider audience |date=January 9, 2007 |website=EURweb.com |access-date=January 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806020112/http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur30733.cfm |archive-date=August 6, 2009}} the video eventually released for "And I Am Telling You" comprised the entire corresponding scene in the actual film.

File:Beyonce Dreamgirls.jpg at the premiere of Dreamgirls]]

Dreamgirls premiered on December 4, 2006, at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City, where it received a standing ovation.{{cite news|last=Friedman |first=Roger |date=December 5, 2006 |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/dreamgirls-gets-standing-ovations-cheers |title='Dreamgirls' Gets Standing Ovations, Cheers |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130102155115/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,234403,00.html |archive-date=January 2, 2013}} The film's Los Angeles premiere was held on December 11 at the Wilshire Theater in Beverly Hills.{{Cite web|url=http://www.broadway.com/Gen/Buzz_Photo_Op.aspx?ci=541878 |title=Loretta Devine & Sheryl Lee Ralph Attend L.A. Premiere of Dreamgirls |date=2006-12-11 |website=Broadway.com |access-date=March 10, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080108131957/http://www.broadway.com/Gen/Buzz_Photo_Op.aspx?ci=541878 |archive-date=January 8, 2008}}

Similar to the releases of older Hollywood musicals such as The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady, and West Side Story, Dreamgirls debuted with three special ten-day roadshow engagements beginning on December 15, 2006, at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City, the Cinerama Dome in Los Angeles, and the AMC Metreon 15 in San Francisco. Tickets for the reserved seats were $25 each; the premium price included a forty-eight page full-color program and a limited-print lithograph. This release made Dreamgirls the first American feature film to have a roadshow release since Man of La Mancha in 1972.{{cite web |date=7 November 2006 |last1=McClintock |first1=Pamela |title=D'works takes 'Girls' on road |url=https://variety.com/2006/film/markets-festivals/d-works-takes-girls-on-road-1117953449/ |website=Variety }} Dreamgirls earned a total of $851,664 from the roadshow engagements, playing to sold-out houses on the weekends.{{cite web| url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=daily&id=dreamgirls.htm |title=Daily Box Office Results for Dreamgirls |website=Box Office Mojo |access-date=December 28, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181106185213/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=daily&id=dreamgirls.htm |archive-date=November 6, 2018 |url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Gray |first=Brandon |date=December 18, 2006 |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=2219&p=.htm |title='Pursuit' Overtakes 'Eragon,' 'Web' |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119173340/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=2219&p=.htm |archive-date=November 19, 2018 |url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/2006W50/ |title=Weekend Box Office Results, Dec. 15 – 17, 2006 |website=Box Office Mojo |access-date=December 18, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190514195307/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=2006&wknd=50&p=.htm |archive-date=May 14, 2019 |url-status=live}} The film's national release, at regular prices, began on December 25. Outside of the U.S., Dreamgirls opened in Australia on January 18, and in the United Kingdom on February 2. Releases in other countries began on various dates between January and early March. Dreamgirls eventually grossed $103 million in North America, and over $155 million worldwide.

DreamWorks Home Entertainment released Dreamgirls to home video on May 1, 2007{{cite web|url=http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070306005609&newsLang=en |title=Press Release: Paramount Home Entertainment Presents the Critically-Acclaimed Smash Hit and Winner of Two Academy Awards®: DREAMGIRLS Two-Disc Showstopper Edition |date=March 6, 2007 |website=Business Wire |access-date=March 6, 2007 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20130102062141/http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070306005609&newsLang=en |archive-date=January 2, 2013}} in DVD, HD DVD, and Blu-ray formats. The DVD version was issued in two editions: a one-disc standard version and a two-disc "Showstopper Edition". The two-disc version also included a feature-length production documentary, production featurettes, screen tests, animatics, and other previsualization materials and artwork. Both DVD versions featured alternative and extended versions of the musical numbers from the film as extras, including the "Effie, Sing My Song" scene deleted during previews. Both the Blu-ray and HD DVD versions were issued in two-disc formats. Dreamgirls was the first DreamWorks film to be issued in a high definition home entertainment format.{{cite web|last=Forster |first=Dave |date=March 6, 2007 |url=http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=64271 |title=Dreamgirls (HD) in May |website=DVD Times |access-date=March 6, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012092515/http://dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=64271 |archive-date=October 12, 2007}} {{as of|2017||}}, total domestic video sales to date are at $95.1 million.{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Dreamgirls#tab=video-sales |title=Dreamgirls (2006) |website=The Numbers |access-date=November 19, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626220610/https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Dreamgirls#tab=video-sales |archive-date=June 26, 2020 |url-status=live}}

A "Director's Extended Edition" of Dreamgirls was released on Blu-ray and Digital HD on October 10, 2017, by Paramount Home Media Distribution.{{cite web|last=Smith |first=Jeremy |date=April 30, 2007 |url=http://www.chud.com/index.php?type=interviews&id=10012 |title=Exclusive Interview: Bill Condon (Dreamgirls DVD) |website=CHUD.com |access-date=May 3, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930181407/http://www.chud.com/index.php?type=interviews&id=10012 |archive-date=September 30, 2007}}{{Cite web |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/DREAMGIRLS-Directors-Cut-Extended-Edition-Coming-to-Blu-ray-Combo-Gift-Set-This-October-20170803 |title=Dreamgirls Director's Cut Extended Edition Coming to Blu-ray Combo Gift Set This October |date=2017-08-03 |website=Broadway World |access-date=2017-08-18 |archive-date=August 19, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170819061819/https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/DREAMGIRLS-Directors-Cut-Extended-Edition-Coming-to-Blu-ray-Combo-Gift-Set-This-October-20170803 |url-status=live }} This version, based on edits done for preview screenings before the film's release, runs ten minutes longer than the theatrical version and features longer musical numbers (including songs and verses cut during previews) and additional scenes.{{Cite web |url=https://www.tribute.ca/news/bill-condon-reveals-whats-exciting-about-dreamgirls-directors-extended-edition/2017/10/09/ |title=Bill Condon reveals what's exciting about Dreamgirls: Director's Extended Edition |last=Fernandes |first=Marriska |date=2017-10-09 |website=tribute.ca |access-date=2017-10-10 |archive-date=October 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010155344/https://www.tribute.ca/news/bill-condon-reveals-whats-exciting-about-dreamgirls-directors-extended-edition/2017/10/09/ |url-status=live }}

File:Jennifer-hudson-gesf-2018-8400.jpg's debut performance as Effie White garnered widespread critical acclaim, earning her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.]]

On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, Dreamgirls holds an approval rating of 79% based on 209 reviews, with an average rating of 7.0/10. The site's critics consensus states: "Dreamgirls{{'}} simple characters and plot hardly detract from the movie's real feats: the electrifying performances and the dazzling musical numbers."{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dreamgirls/ |title=Dreamgirls (2006) |website=Rotten Tomatoes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922213713/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dreamgirls |archive-date=September 22, 2020 |url-status=live}} Metacritic gives a weighted average score of 76 out of 100 rating, based on 37 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.{{cite web | url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/dreamgirls | title=Dreamgirls reviews | work=Metacritic | publisher=CBS Interactive | access-date=January 5, 2016 | archive-date=January 2, 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102155328/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/dreamgirls | url-status=live }} Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemascore.com/|title=Find CinemaScore|format=Type "Dreamgirls" in the search box|publisher=CinemaScore|access-date=May 2, 2021|archive-date=January 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102130540/https://www.cinemascore.com/|url-status=live}}

Rolling Stone's Peter Travers gave the film three and a half stars (out of four) and the number-two position on his "best of 2006" list, stating that "despite transitional bumps, Condon does Dreamgirls proud".{{cite magazine |author-link=Peter Travers |last=Travers |first=Peter |date=2006-11-21 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/9141695/review/12625995/dreamgirls |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130104163613/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/9141695/review/12625995/dreamgirls |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 4, 2013 |title=Dreamgirls (review) |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=2006-12-02}}{{cite magazine |last=Travers |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Travers |date=2006-11-21 |title=The Best 10 Movies of 2006 |magazine=Rolling Stone |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/12842078/the_10_best_movies_of_2006 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20061217142730/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/12842078/the_10_best_movies_of_2006 |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 17, 2006 |access-date=2006-12-21 }} David Rooney of Variety reported that the film featured "tremendously exciting musical sequences" and that "after The Phantom of the Opera, Rent and The Producers botched the transfer from stage to screen, Dreamgirls gets it right."{{cite web |last=Rooney |first=David |date=2006-12-02 |url=https://variety.com/2006/film/awards/dreamgirls-7-1200511727/ |title=Dreamgirls (review) |work=Variety |access-date=August 3, 2022 |archive-date=July 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706171540/http://www.variety.com/VE1117932225.html |url-status=live }}

On the December 10, 2006 episode of the television show Ebert & Roeper, Richard Roeper and guest critic Aisha Tyler (filling in for Roger Ebert, who was recovering from cancer-related surgery) gave the film "two thumbs up", with Roeper's reservations that it was "a little short on heart and soul" and "deeply conventional".{{cite episode|last1=Roeper |first1=Richard |last2=Tyler |first2=Aisha |title=Dreamgirls |date=2006-12-09 |season=21 |number=26 |series=At the Movies |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFayojdcxSU |access-date=2024-08-03 |network=Buena Vista Television}} Roeper still enjoyed the film, noting that Jennifer Hudson's rendition of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" as the "show-stopping moment of any film of 2006" and very much enjoyed Murphy's performance as well, remarking that "people are going to love this film." Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter was less enthusiastic, stating that while the film was "a damn good commercial movie, it is not the film that will revive the musical or win over the world".{{cite web |last=Honeycutt |first=Kirk |date=2006-12-01 |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?&rid=8464 |title=Dreamgirls (review) |work=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=2006-12-02 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070109132607/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?&rid=8464 |archive-date = 2007-01-09 |url-status=dead }} Ed Gonzales of Slant magazine found the entire picture too glossy, and declared that "the film doesn't care to articulate the emotions that haunt its characters".{{cite web|last=Gonzales |first=Ed |date=2006-12-15 |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=2707 |title=Dreamgirls (review) |work=Slant Magazine |access-date=2006-12-15 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109143203/http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=2707 |archive-date=January 9, 2007 }} University of Sydney academic Timothy Laurie was critical of the film's social message, noting that "the worthy receive just desserts by working even

harder for the industries that marginalise them".{{cite journal|last=Laurie |first=Timothy |year=2012 |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13504630.2012.667603 |title=Come and get these memories: gender, history and racial uplift in Bill Condon's Dreamgirls |journal=Social Identities: Journal for the Study of Race, Nation and Culture |volume=18 |number=5 |pages=537–553 |doi=10.1080/13504630.2012.667603 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225151823/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13504630.2012.667603 |archive-date=February 25, 2021 |url-status=live}}

Many reviews, regardless of their overall opinion of the film, cited Hudson's and Murphy's performances as standouts, with Travers proclaiming Murphy's performance of "Jimmy's Rap" as "his finest screen moment." Television host Oprah Winfrey saw the film during a November 15 press screening, and telephoned Hudson on the Oprah episode airing the next day, praising her performance as "a religious experience" and "a transcendent performance."{{cite video|people=DiMaio, Debra |date=2006-11-16 |title=The Oprah Winfrey Show |medium=Television series |location=Chicago, Illinois |publisher=Harpo Productions}} A review for The Celebrity Cafe echoes that Hudson's voice "is like nothing we’ve heard in a long time, and her acting is a great match for that power-house sound."{{cite web|last=Pace |first=Elizabeth |date=2007-01-19 |url=http://thecelebritycafe.com/movies/full_review/12086.html |title=Dreamgirls |work=The Celebrity Cafe |access-date=2007-03-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009184248/http://thecelebritycafe.com/movies/full_review/12086.html |archive-date=October 9, 2007 |df=mdy }}

Jennifer Holliday, who originated the role of Effie onstage, expressed her disappointment at not being involved in the film project in several TV, radio, and print interviews.{{cite web|last=Nader |first=Juli |date=November 21, 2006 |website=Black Public Relations Wire |url=http://www.blackprwire.com/display-news.asp?id=2803 |title=Exclusive: Jennifer Holliday Says She Created Role in Dreamgirls and Doesn't Want to Be Forgotten |access-date=November 27, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070823111344/http://www.blackprwire.com/display-news.asp?id=2803 |archive-date=August 23, 2007}} Holliday in particular objected to the fact that her 1982 recording of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" was used in an early Dreamgirls film teaser trailer created before production began. Many of the other original Dreamgirls Broadway cast members, among them Obba Babatundé, Vondie Curtis-Hall, and Cleavant Derricks, were interviewed for a Jet magazine article in which they discussed their varying opinions of both the Dreamgirls film's script and production.{{cite magazine|last=Christian |first=Margena A. |date=December 11, 2006 |title=Creative License or 'Sour Grapes'? Original Broadway Cast of 'Dreamgirls' Feels Left Out of Movie History |magazine=Jet |volume=110 |number=23 |issn=0021-5996 |pages=54–57, 65 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rTsDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA54 |access-date=3 August 2024}}

DreamWorks and Paramount began a significant awards campaign for Dreamgirls while the film was still in production. In February 2006, the press was invited on set to a special live event showcasing the making of the film, including a live performance of "Steppin' to the Bad Side" by the cast.{{cite web|last=Franklin |first=Garth |date=February 28, 2006 |url=http://www.darkhorizons.com/news06/060228e.php |title="Dreamgirls" Presented To Press |website=Dark Horizons |access-date=March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120723232429/http://www.darkhorizons.com/news06/060228e.php |archive-date=2012-07-23}} Three months later, twenty minutes of the film — specifically, the musical sequences "Fake Your Way to the Top", "Family", "When I First Saw You", and "Dreamgirls" – were screened at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, with most of the cast and crew in attendance.{{cite web|last=Friedman |first=Roger |date=May 20, 2006 |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,196314,00.html#1 |title=Oscars 2007? Dreamgirls |website=Fox News |access-date=March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070410025711/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,196314,00.html#1 |archive-date=April 10, 2007 }}{{cite web|last=Kilday |first=Gregg |date=May 23, 2007 |url=http://movies.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1165980.php/%60dreamgirls%60_Gets_Exposed |title=Dreamgirls gets early Oscar boost |website=Monsters and Critics |access-date=March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070514005850/http://movies.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1165980.php/%60dreamgirls%60_Gets_Exposed |archive-date=May 14, 2007}} The resulting positive buzz earned Dreamgirls the status of "front-runner" for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Picture and several of the other Oscars as well.{{cite web|last=Wells |first=Jeffrey |date=August 15, 2006 |url=http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/archives/2006/08/post_32.php |title=Oscar Mashing at Paramount |website=Hollywood Elsewhere |access-date=March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061108175500/http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/archives/2006/08/post_32.php |archive-date=November 8, 2006 }}

Following the success of the Cannes screening, DreamWorks and Paramount began a widespread "For Your Consideration" advertisement campaign, raising several eyebrows by demoting Jennifer Hudson to consideration for Best Supporting Actress and presenting Beyoncé Knowles as the sole Best Actress candidate, as opposed to having both compete for Best Actress awards. By contrast, the actresses who originated Hudson's and Knowles' roles on Broadway, Jennifer Holliday and Sheryl Lee Ralph, respectively, were both nominated for the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress, with Holliday winning the award. The presentation of Knowles over Hudson as the sole Best Actress candidate had interesting parallels with the film itself.

Dreamgirls received eight 2007 Academy Award nominations covering six categories, the most of any film for the year, although it was not nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, or either of the lead acting categories. The film's nominations included Best Supporting Actor (Eddie Murphy), Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson), Best Achievement in Costume Design, Best Achievement in Art Direction, Best Achievement in Sound Mixing, and three nominations for Best Song ("Listen", "Love You I Do", and "Patience"). Dreamgirls is the first live-action film to receive three nominations for Best Song; previously the Disney animated features Beauty and the Beast (1991) and The Lion King (1994) had each received three Academy Award nominations for Best Song; Enchanted (2007) has since repeated the feat.{{cite news|last=Gallo |first=Phil |date=January 23, 2007 |url=https://www.variety.com/awardcentral_article/VR1117957938.html?nav=oscars |title=This year's Oscar fun facts |work=Variety |access-date=January 24, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104200844/http://www.variety.com/awardcentral_article/VR1117957938.html?nav=oscars |archive-date=November 4, 2012}}

In addition, Dreamgirls was the first film in Academy Award history to receive the highest number of nominations for the year, yet not be nominated for Best Picture.{{cite news|last=Howell |first= Peter |date=January 24, 2007 |url=https://www.thestar.com/artsentertainment/article/174146 |title=Dream on, girls |work=Toronto Star |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020114436/http://www.thestar.com/artsentertainment/article/174146 |archive-date=October 20, 2012 }} The film's failure to gain a Best Picture or Best Director nod was widely viewed by the entertainment press as a "snub" by the academy.{{cite news|last=Goodman |first=Dean |date=2007-01-24 |url=http://in.news.yahoo.com/070123/137/6bftc.html |title='Dreamgirls' snubbed for Oscars best film nomination |agency=Reuters |access-date=January 29, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070129053808/http://in.news.yahoo.com/070123/137/6bftc.html |archive-date=January 29, 2007}} Some journalists registered shock,{{cite web|last=O'Neil |first=Tom |date=January 23, 2007 |url=http://goldderby.latimes.com/awards_goldderby/2007/01/wake_me_up_from.html |title=Wake Me Up from this 'Dreamgirls' nightmare! |website=The Envelope |publisher=Los Angeles Times |access-date=March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090808010710/http://goldderby.latimes.com/awards_goldderby/2007/01/wake_me_up_from.html |archive-date=August 8, 2009}} while others cited a "backlash".{{cite news|last=Felton |first=Robert |date=February 28, 2007 |url=http://austinweeklynews.1upsoftware.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=1101&TM=82934.76 |title=Dreamgirls' Best Picture snub and Oscar night thud |work=Austin Weekly News |access-date=March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222145514/http://austinweeklynews.1upsoftware.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&ArticleID=1101&TM=82934.76 |archive-date=February 22, 2012}} On the other hand, director Bill Condon stated that "I think academy members just liked the other movies better"{{cite news|last=Holson |first=Laura M. |date=January 29, 2007 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/29/business/media/29dreamgirls.html |title='Dreamgirls' Banked on Best Picture, and Lost |work=The New York Times |access-date= March 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160717122314/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/29/business/media/29dreamgirls.html |archive-date=July 17, 2016 |url-status=live}} and that he believed that "we were never going to win even if we were nominated." Reports emerged of significant behind-the-scenes in-fighting between the DreamWorks and Paramount camps, in particular between DreamWorks' David Geffen and Paramount CEO Brad Grey, over decision making and credit-claiming during the Dreamgirls awards campaign.{{sfn|LaPorte|2010|pp=[https://archive.org/details/menwhowouldbekin00lapo/page/414 414–420]}}

At the Academy Awards ceremony on February 25, 2007, Dreamgirls won Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Sound Mixing. As such, Hudson became one of the few actresses ever to win an Oscar for a film debut performance and is, to date, the only alumnus ever from American Idol to be both nominated and win an Academy Award. In what was considered an upset, Murphy lost the Best Supporting Actor award to Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine. Knowles, Hudson, Rose, and Robinson performed a medley of the three Dreamgirls songs nominated for Best Original Song, although all three songs lost the award to "I Need to Wake Up" from An Inconvenient Truth.{{cite web|title=Nominees & Winners for the 79th Academy Awards |url=http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/oscarlegacy/2000-present/79nominees.html |work=Oscars.org |publisher=Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |access-date=16 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806185654/http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/oscarlegacy/2000-present/79nominees.html |archive-date=August 6, 2011 |df=mdy }}

For the 2007 Golden Globe Awards, Dreamgirls was nominated in five categories: Best Picture – Comedy or Musical, Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical (Beyoncé Knowles), Best Supporting Actor (Eddie Murphy), Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson), and Best Original Song ("Listen"). The film won the awards for Best Picture — Comedy or Musical, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Supporting Actress.{{cite web|url=http://www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/year/2006/ |title=Golden Globe Awards for 2006 |website=GoldenGlobes.org |access-date=2010-05-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011080913/http://www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/year/2006/ |archive-date=October 11, 2011}} Dreamgirls received eight NAACP Image Award nominations, winning for Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson) and Outstanding Album (the soundtrack LP).{{cite web|title=The 38th NAACP Image Awards Takes Place With Superstar Entertainer LL Cool J As Host|url=http://www.naacpimageawards.net/PDFs/38th_NAACP_Image_Awards_Winners_Release.pdf |work=naacpimageawards.net |publisher=National Association for the Advancement of Colored People |access-date=17 May 2010 |date=15 March 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100107042451/http://www.naacpimageawards.net/PDFs/38th_NAACP_Image_Awards_Winners_Release.pdf |archive-date=January 7, 2010 }} It was also named as one of the American Film Institute's top ten films of 2006.

Dreamgirls also garnered Screen Actors Guild Awards for Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson) and Supporting Actor (Eddie Murphy), as well as a nomination for its ensemble cast.{{cite web|title=The 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards |url=https://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/13th-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards|work=SAG Awards|publisher=Screen Actors Guild Awards|access-date=3 August 2024}} The film was also nominated by the Producers Guild of America for Best Picture and the Directors Guild of America for Bill Condon's directing. The British Academy of Film and Television Arts gave the film awards for Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson) and Music (Henry Krieger).

Furthermore, Dreamgirls was nominated for eleven 2007 International Press Academy Satellite Awards, and won four of the awards: Best Picture — Comedy or Musical, Best Director (Bill Condon), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Jennifer Hudson), and Best Sound (Mixing & Editing).{{cite web|date=2006-12-01 |url=http://www.pressacademy.com/satawards/forms/pdf/2006-IPA-Nom-Announce.pdf |title=Official press release for International Press Academy Satellite Awards Nominations |work=pressacademy.com |publisher=International Press Academy |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928115940/http://www.pressacademy.com/satawards/forms/pdf/2006-IPA-Nom-Announce.pdf |archive-date=September 28, 2011 }} Dreamgirls also received a record eleven Black Reel Award nominations, and won six of the awards, among them Best Film.{{cite web|title=The Black Reel Awards: Winner|url=http://blackreelawards.wordpress.com/winners/|work=The Black Reel Awards|access-date=17 May 2010|date=2009-02-12|archive-date=October 9, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101009020432/http://blackreelawards.wordpress.com/winners/|url-status=dead}} At the 50th Grammy Awards ceremony, "Love You I Do" won the award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.{{cite web|title=Grammy 2008 Winners List|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1581272/20080210/story.jhtml|work=MTV News|access-date=17 May 2010|date=10 February 2010|archive-date=June 22, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120622121558/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1581272/grammy-2008-winners.jhtml|url-status=dead}} The Dreamgirls soundtrack was also nominated for the Grammy for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album.

For the opening performance at the 2007 BET Awards on June 26 of that year, Hudson performed a duet of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" with her predecessor, Jennifer Holliday. Later that night, Hudson won the BET Award for Best Actress.{{cite web|last=Jessen|first=Monique|title=Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson Top BET Awards|url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20043874,00.html|work=People|publisher=Time Inc.|access-date=17 May 2010|date=27 June 2007|archive-date=April 20, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100420000603/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20043874,00.html|url-status=dead}}

In February 2022, Hudson's rendition of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" was named one of the five finalists for Oscars Cheer Moment as part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' "Oscars Fan Favorite" contest, finishing in fourth place.{{cite web |url=https://www.cbr.com/zack-snyders-justice-league-oscars-cheer-moment-winner/ |title=Zack Snyder's Justice League Tops 'Oscars Cheer Moment' List |website=CBR |date=2022-03-28 |accessdate=2022-03-28 |archive-date=April 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220401193531/https://www.cbr.com/zack-snyders-justice-league-oscars-cheer-moment-winner/ |url-status=live }}

To give the story more exposure for the upcoming film release, DreamWorks and the licenser of the original play, The Tams-Witmark Music Library, announced that they would pay the licensing fees for all non-professional stage performances of Dreamgirls for the calendar year of 2006. DreamWorks hoped to encourage amateur productions of Dreamgirls, and familiarize a wider audience with the play. As a result, more than fifty high schools, colleges, community theaters, and other non-commercial theater entities staged productions of Dreamgirls in 2006, and DreamWorks spent up to $250,000 subsidizing the licensing.{{cite news |author1=Olsen |first=Mark |date=December 12, 2006 |title=One stage of film's marketing is on stage |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-dec-12-et-dreamgirls12-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220605220544/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-dec-12-et-dreamgirls12-story.html |archive-date=June 5, 2022 |access-date=June 5, 2022 |work=Los Angeles Times}}

The Dreamgirls novelization was written by African-American novelist Denene Millner, and adapts the film's official script in chapter form, along with fourteen pages of photographs from the film. The book was released on October 31, 2006.{{Cite book |last=Millner |first=Denene |title=Dreamgirls |publisher=HarperEntertainment |year=2006 |isbn=978-0061231445}} A scrapbook, entitled Dreamgirls: The Movie Musical, was released on March 27, 2007.{{sfn|Dreamgirls|2007}} The limited edition program guide accompanying the Dreamgirls road show release was made available for retail purchase in February.{{Citation needed|reason=WP:V|date=June 2022}} In addition, the Tonner Doll Company released "The Dreamettes" collection, featuring dolls of the characters Deena, Lorrell, and Effie, to coincide with the release of the film.{{Cite web |title=Goods from the Dreamgirls line |url=https://dollscroll.com/items-collection-dreamgirls?lang=en_US |access-date=2024-08-03 |website=dollscroll.com}}

Aside from the overall plot of the film and elements already present in the stage musical, many direct references to The Supremes, Motown, or R&B/soul history in general are included in the film. In one scene, Effie saunters into Curtis' office and discusses Rainbow Records' latest LP, The Great March to Freedom, a spoken word album featuring speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. This LP is an authentic Motown release, issued as Gordy 906 in June 1963.Condon, Bill in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|pp=36–38}}{{Cite web |last1=Edwards |first1=David |last2=Callahan |first2=Mike |date=1999 |title=Gordy Album Discography, Part 1 (1962–1981) |url=http://www.bsnpubs.com/gordy.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927172951/http://www.bsnpubs.com/gordy.html |archive-date=September 27, 2007 |access-date=February 3, 2007 |website=bsnpubs.com}} A later scene features Curtis and the Dreams recording in the studio, while a riot rages outside. By comparison, Motown's Hitsville U.S.A. studio remained open and active during Detroit's 12th Street Riot in July 1967.Condon, Bill in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|pp=57–59}}{{sfn|Posner|2002|p=173}} The photo shoot montage which accompanies "When I First Saw You", as well as the subplot of Deena being forced to star in Curtis' Cleopatra film against her will, reflect both scenes from and the production of Mahogany, a 1975 Motown film starring Diana Ross and directed by Motown CEO Berry Gordy.{{Cite web |last=Kirkland |first=Bruce |date=May 4, 2007 |title=Dreamgirls DVD fan-friendly |url=http://jam.canoe.ca/Video/DVD_Column/2007/05/04/4153324.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710131104/http://jam.canoe.ca/Video/DVD_Column/2007/05/04/4153324.html |archive-date=July 10, 2012 |access-date=June 15, 2007 |website=Jam! Showbiz}} In a snapshot, Ed Sullivan appears presenting the real Supremes on his show.

Among the more direct references are the uses of adapted Supremes album cover designs for albums recorded in the film by the Dreams. Three Supremes albums – Let the Sunshine In, Cream of the Crop, and Touch – were reworked into Deena Jones & The Dreams album designs, with the only differences in the designs being the substitution of the names and images of the Supremes with those of Deena Jones & the Dreams. Another Dreams LP seen in the film, Meet the Dreams, is represented by an album cover derived from the designs for the Supremes LPs Meet The Supremes, More Hits by The Supremes and The Supremes A' Go-Go.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2007/01/11/DI2007011101162_pf.html |title=The Real Dreamgirl |date=2007-01-12 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=2007-02-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119175010/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2007/01/11/DI2007011101162_pf.html |archive-date=November 19, 2018 |url-status=live }} There is also a solo album, Just In Time, recorded by Deena Jones shown in the film, the album cover for which is based on Dionne Warwick's 1970 album, Very Dionne.

Diana Ross, long a critic of the Broadway version of Dreamgirls for what she saw as an appropriation of her life story,{{cite web |last=O'Neil |first=Tom |date=2006-10-18 |title=Diana's 'Dreamgirls' decision |url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/awards/oscars/env-oneill-dreamgirls-18oct18,0,2314826.story?page=1&coll=env-home-headlines |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071229221830/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/awards/oscars/env-oneill-dreamgirls-18oct18,0,2314826.story?page=1&coll=env-home-headlines |archive-date=December 29, 2007 |access-date=2007-10-27 |work=TheEnvelope.com |publisher=Los Angeles Times}} denied having seen the film version.{{cite web |date=2007-01-16 |title=Diana Ross Talks About 'Dreamgirls,' Secrets to Staying Power |url=https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/WinterConcert/story?id=2798141&page=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200627113616/https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/WinterConcert/story?id=2798141&page=1 |archive-date=June 27, 2020 |access-date=2007-02-27 |website=ABC News}} On the other hand, Mary Wilson attended the film's Los Angeles premiere, later stating that Dreamgirls moved her to tears and that it was "closer to the truth than they even know".{{cite web |date=November 7, 2006 |title=Mary Wilson on the New Film, 'Dreamgirls' |url=http://extratv.warnerbros.com/v2/news/1206/07/3/text.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080221110835/http://extratv.warnerbros.com/v2/news/1206/07/3/text.html |archive-date=February 21, 2008 |access-date=2006-12-09 |work=Extra |publisher=Warner Bros. Television |location=Los Angeles}}

However, Smokey Robinson was less than pleased about the film's allusions to Motown history. In a January 25, 2007 interview with NPR, Robinson expressed offense at the film's portrayal of its Berry Gordy analogue, Curtis Taylor Jr., as a "villainous character" who deals in payola and other illegal activities.{{cite web |date=2007-01-25 |last=Blair |first=Elizabeth |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7015150 |title=Does 'Dreamgirls' Offer Lowdown on Motown? |work=NPR.org |access-date=2007-02-27 |archive-date=October 27, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181027232028/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7015150 |url-status=live }} He repeated these concerns in a later interview with Access Hollywood, adding that he felt DreamWorks and Paramount owed Gordy an apology.{{cite web |date=2007-02-02 |last=Robinson |first=Shaun |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/smokey-robinson-slams-dreamgirls-wbna16950294 |title=Smokey Robinson slams 'Dreamgirls' |work=Today.com |access-date=2007-02-27 |archive-date=February 20, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200220070904/https://www.today.com/popculture/smokey-robinson-slams-dreamgirls-wbna16950294 |url-status=live }} On February 23, a week before the Oscars ceremony, DreamWorks and Paramount issued an apology to Gordy and the other Motown alumni.{{cite news |date=2007-02-23 |title=Motown Honcho Makes Up With 'Dreamgirls' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/23/AR2007022301447.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624184521/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/23/AR2007022301447.html |archive-date=June 24, 2016 |access-date=2014-01-07 |newspaper=The Washington Post |agency=Associated Press}} Gordy issued a statement shortly afterwards expressing his acceptance of the apology.

The payola scheme used in the film's script, to which Robinson took offense, is identical to the payola scheme allegedly used by Gordy and the other Motown executives, according to sworn court depositions from Motown executive Michael Lushka, offered during the litigation between the label and its chief creative team, Holland–Dozier–Holland.Condon, Bill in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|p=109}}{{sfn|Posner|2002|pp=216–222}} Several references are also made to Mafia-backed loans Curtis uses to fund Rainbow Records.Condon, Bill in {{harvtxt|Dreamgirls|2007|pp=93, 109}} Gordy was highly suspected, though never proven, to have used Mafia-backed loans to finance Motown during its later years.{{sfn|Posner|2002|pp=199–203}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|title=Dreamgirls: The Movie Musical |year=2007 |location=New York |publisher=Newmarket Press |isbn=978-1557047458 |url=https://archive.org/details/dreamgirls00morr/ |ref={{harvid|Dreamgirls|2007}}}}
• {{cite book|last=LaPorte |first=Nicole |date=May 4, 2010 |title=The Men Who Would Be King: An Almost Epic Tale of Moguls, Movies, and a Company Called DreamWorks |location=Boston, MA |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |url=https://archive.org/details/menwhowouldbekin00lapo/ |isbn=978-0547134703}}
• {{cite book|last=Posner |first=Gerald |year=2002 |title=Motown: Music, Money, Sex, and Power |location=New York |publisher=Random House |isbn=0-375-50062-6}}

{{wikiquote}}

• {{Official website|https://web.archive.org/web/20120218125324/http://www.dreamgirlsmovie.com/}}
• {{IMDb title|0443489|Dreamgirls}}
• {{TCMDb title|641880|Dreamgirls}}
• {{AFI film|54825}}
• {{Mojo title|dreamgirls|Dreamgirls}}

{{Dreamgirls}}

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