The Breakfast Club - INTERVIEW: Nicole Paultre Bell Talks 'Aftershock' Film, Remembering & Honoring Sean Bell, Motherhood + More

Episode Date: November 26, 2025

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BreakfastClubPower1051FMSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 This is an I-Heart podcast, Guaranteed Human. On this week's episode of Next Chapter, I, TDJ, sit down with Denzel Washington, a two-time Academy Award-winning actor and cultural icon. I don't take any credit for it. I just didn't put me first. I just put God first, and he's carrying me. Listen to the next chapter podcast on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. New episodes drop weekly.
Starting point is 00:00:34 Hey there, Dr. Jesse Mills here. I'm the director of the men's clinic at UCLA, and I want to tell you about my new podcast called The Mail Room. And I'm Jordan, the show's producer. And like most guys, I haven't been to the doctor in way too long. I'll be asking the questions we probably should be asking, but aren't. Every week, we're breaking down the world of men's health from testosterone and fitness to diets and fertility. We'll talk science without the jargon and get your real answers to the stuff you actually wonder about. So check out the mailroom on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your favorite shows.
Starting point is 00:01:06 What up, y'all? It's your boy, Kevin on stage. I want to tell you about my new podcast called Not My Best Moment, where I talk to artists, athletes, entertainers, creators, friends, people I admire who have had massive success about their massive failures. What did they mess up on? What is their heartbreak? And what did they learn from it?
Starting point is 00:01:24 I got judged, oh, horribly. The judges were like, you're trash. I don't know how you got on the show. Check out Not My Best Moment with me, Kev on stage, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcast. Hi, I'm Dr. Priyanko Wally. And I'm Hurricane DeBolu. On our new podcast Health Stuff, we demystify your burning health questions.
Starting point is 00:01:45 You'll hear us being completely honest about her own health. My residency colon was like a cry for help, honestly. And you'll hear candid advice and personal stories from experts who want to make health care more human. I feel like they never felt like I truly belonged in medicine. We want to make health less confusing and maybe even a little fun. Find health stuff on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Big Take podcast from Bloomberg News keeps you on top of the biggest stories of the day. My fellow Americans, this is Liberation Day.
Starting point is 00:02:21 Stories that move markets. Chair Powell opened the door to this first interest rate cut. Impact politics, change businesses. This is a really stunning development for the AI world and how you think about your bottom line. Listen to the big take from Bloomberg News every weekday afternoon on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hold on every day I wake up.
Starting point is 00:02:48 Wake your ass up. Do you all finish or y'all done? Morning, everybody, it's D.J.N.V. Just hilarious. Shalameen de Guy. We are the breakfast club. We got a special guest in the building. Yes, indeed. We have Nicole Bell. Welcome. Good morning. How are you feeling this morning? I'm feeling great. Glad to be here. Absolutely. We got a new movie, Aftershocked.
Starting point is 00:03:07 The Nicole P. Bell story, which is November 28th. When you decided to tell this story through film, what truth did you feel America still didn't understand about what happened, Michelle. I think America doesn't understand. what the families really go through behind the scenes um for me i was 22 years old shan was only 23 when he was killed and we had two small daughters um my daughters at the time were baby girls so going through the years of fighting for justice the levels of um government state trial federal investigation departmental hearings civil um and then reforms fighting for reforms that takes a toll And as a 22-year-old young woman,
Starting point is 00:03:55 surrounded by the nation who supported us, my family, the community, that's what really empowered me to move forward. And what I think a lot of people need to understand is that many people want to tell their stories. People want their stories heard. And we don't really know how, what outlet, but I'm blessed to get a chance to meet people like Manny
Starting point is 00:04:16 and give us the opportunity to put this real-life story now on screens for people to see and see what really happened behind the scenes. If you don't mind, I want to go back a little bit if you don't mind. And the reason being is, after watching a movie, I'm from Queens, so you lived it, but you just forget, right?
Starting point is 00:04:38 With everything going on in the world, you forget the ends, the outs, and the details, and you just assume, right? Like, I'm not even going to lie. I forgot the cops, got to quit it. Like, you forget so many things. How long? It's been over 20 years,
Starting point is 00:04:51 So this year, this, tomorrow, makes 19 years. 19 years. So for people that don't know the Sean Bell story, just break it down a little bit. You guys were high school sweethearts. Yeah. You were about to get married, and I'll let you go from there. So, yes. So Sean and I both went to John Adams High School in Ozone Park, Queens.
Starting point is 00:05:12 We're from Queens, south side Jamaica, Queens. So we met there. Sean played baseball. We met, we dated, just like everyone. else. After school, Sean went on to Nassau Community College. He played baseball for a little there. When I graduated, we kind of went straight into building a family. I was a young mom. And after the birth of my second daughter, Sean had surprised me with a ring. And it was Christmas day. All the family, we were all together sitting by the tree. He had a, he had given me a shoebox.
Starting point is 00:05:49 right? And I thought, oh, there's another pair of shoes because he had bought me shoes before. I didn't really like the shoes that he bought me last time. But he bought me these shoes. And I was like, okay, we got another pair of shoes coming. I opened up the shoebox. Inside the shoebox was a watchbox. I was like, oh, surprise, I got a watch. Open up the watch box, and the
Starting point is 00:06:05 watch box was a ring box. And that was the day that, you know, we decided to get married. So we hadn't made any plans, maybe about a year, so had passed. And then at that point our daughters were Jada was three and a half almost four and Jordan was just born
Starting point is 00:06:27 so she was about five months old so sometime in November of 06 early November he had sat me down he's like one day he came home he's like hey come let's sit down and talk um we were living in far rock away at the time and I was kind of nervous not sure what he wanted to talk about because he wasn't the come sit down and talk to me type of person it was just like he would say what it is but he had talked to his mom he had talked to my mom he had talked to the pastors and he had planned the wedding my best friends knew and I was just shocked that I didn't know no I hadn't find out you know I was kind of feeling like how could y'all keep this secret for me that's one of the most stressful things ever to plan a wedding what and he had it he had the church
Starting point is 00:07:13 he had the only thing he couldn't do was get my dress and that's what my best friend told me his mother told me like you cannot buy her dress for her y'all you got to let her pick out a dress so that time that point in my life it was really the happiest point in my life and it was two weeks before the due date so we had celebrated November 23rd as our anniversary and he was like we're going to do it on the 25th it was the weekend the family's going to fly in I mean they had everything together and I went then so the eve of the 24th I went from my my bachelor's party, my mom's house. We did like a little small intimate bridal shower and then he went out with some of the guys from the neighborhood. My brother-in-law was there and his father
Starting point is 00:07:58 was there. And at some point during the night, I got a call. It was early morning like 4 a.m. at this point on the wedding day, that something happened and we needed to get to the hospital. now when that happened breakdown because the police tried to lie right it was so many different stories and like I said after watching the movie you go down this rabbit hole of Google right and then you start remembering all the lies
Starting point is 00:08:25 that they did and just trying to break his character and all that without going too much because some of it's in the movie some of it's not break down how the family took that because here you got a young man that did everything right he went to school he got his degree he was working he had a couple of jobs but now you can
Starting point is 00:08:40 got the city or the police officers trying to break his spirit. So how did the family feel during that time? It was devastating. It was devastating for his parents. It was devastating for me. I had to kind of like isolate myself from like things like social media and I couldn't read the comments, things like that. It was just kind of getting out of hand. But it was completely devastating because we were like just in shock, you know, in a lot of pain mentally. And then there were stories coming out like the fourth man. There's a fourth man. They came out. right away with that one and then it disappeared right away it went away and it was just a whole smear campaign and I had come to find out just by my attorneys and the leaders like
Starting point is 00:09:22 Reverend Sharpton and people who around me like this is what happens when innocent people are killed by police officers every day which is crazy because you couldn't even grieve I'm sitting there and you're trying to grieve you have these young kids but then you're trying to protect the name And it's like, could you even grieved during that time? So I went straight into getting active. And so the next day, we went to a rally. Day after that, you know, we did a march. And then after the funeral, it was just like now it's time to, you know,
Starting point is 00:09:58 let people know shine a light on exactly what's happening. So, no, grieving didn't happen right away. And I would go home and cry. You know, I come out and, you know, make it, you know, look as good as it needs to be, but behind the scenes, I was a mess. You know, I was a wreck. And my family really formed like this barrier around me to protect me and help me with the girls. They were so young. And that was really, that was the whole program from that point on. Everywhere I went, I was kind of surrounded by somebody who was from the family or someone who was there to kind
Starting point is 00:10:31 of act as like, all right, if I have to step in and help, you know, we're going to do that. But I tell people all the time you know like there's no specific order in which you grieve you know for me going through this film and also working on a book it brings back every thought every memory
Starting point is 00:10:49 there's been times when even recently I've lost sleep and I had to get back into therapy you know and speak to a therapist but I'm so grieving I mean you got to grieve and keep it moving and that's really what that's what it was about back then how did your understanding of grief
Starting point is 00:11:04 change over the years, like once the cameras disappeared and life's just kept moving. Yeah, yeah. So, you know, it's like we're living this, you know, once the cameras leave and the smoke clears, this is still my life. This is still my, and I still have to find a way to take care of my daughters. I still have to find a way to work. I still have to find a way to, you know, keep his memory alive and do all these things
Starting point is 00:11:28 at the same time. So, I mean, my understanding of it was, you know, we just got to keep it. moving. I have to keep going forward. I don't know where this is going, but I know I'm going to keep pushing forward, and I know eventually we'll get somewhere. And that's all it was for me. It's just keep going. Like, I can't think about what's going to happen next month, but I'm going to take it one day at a time. And that's really what it's about. It's just pushing forward. What's something people assume gets easier with time, but actually becomes more difficult? I think even this, you know, this conversation here. Yeah, I think people think, you know, that,
Starting point is 00:12:04 hey, you know, maybe you're far removed from it by now, but it's, it's an ongoing thing. Like, just recently I was on the phone with my therapist, just bawling, you know, like, you know, we, everyone, you know, thinks of this whole term, like, you know, being strong and, you know, but there's so many ways to look at, you know, how, what that means. And so we get blinded by it. Like, I have to be strong. I have to be strong. But strong is like just one day strong might be just getting out of bed. One day, the next day, Strong might be sitting here on a radio station. It looks different.
Starting point is 00:12:39 And to me, that's the way I identify what, like, moving forward is and how grief works. There's no specific order in which that happens and how it comes. So, I mean, and then my daughters, you know, I can't be far removed from it because my girls are every day, you know, a part of him. And my daughters, they deal with it in different ways, you know, from when they were younger. and you know until now now now how was that raising those young queens because i remember when it happened right my dad who was a retired police officer did not want me out right he already didn't want me out yeah you know it was always like you got to come home you got to drive and the streets during that time was was real dangerous so so i could imagine the anxiety of of every day your daughter
Starting point is 00:13:26 just wanting to leave to go anywhere so so how was that absolutely i mean there were talks that you know if there's ever, you know, if you're ever approached, you know, by a police officer, like, remain calm. Just, you know, let me handle that. You know, you get as much information as you can and let me handle that. But it was terrifying, for one. But not just for them, you know, for anyone I loved, you know, I was worried about my dad. I was worried about, you know, my brother-in-laws, the men in my life, you know, just not sure about what's going to happen. But it was bad back then. And people who supported us were targeted, you know, after, you know, for supporting us. I learned that from, you know, elected officials.
Starting point is 00:14:06 I learned that from artists who support us. And it was bad. It was really bad. And that was so important. That's why it was so important for me to show people the human side. Like, this is who we are. This is who he was. And this is the family.
Starting point is 00:14:21 And that's still what it is, even till this day. Let's stay there for a second. What parts of Sean's life? and character, did you want this film to reclaim from like all the media analysis? So I need people just to know that, you know, Sean was just like, you know, you and you, DJ Envy, like he was a person who like loved his woman.
Starting point is 00:14:43 He loved his family, he loved his mom, his dad. He wasn't a person who had many close friends. He, the friends that he, he was very selective about who he considered his friends. And the ones who were, you know, his friends, he, would take care of him on his bachelor party night he was driving his friends you know like he was driving the guys from the neighborhood in his in my car so this is who sean was he wasn't you know a person that's like you know just not you know um or i guess what the narrative was being pushed out
Starting point is 00:15:19 um at some points if it wasn't for the family and if it wasn't for like the advocates and everyone who stood up like i don't know what the image would have been. But for us, it was important to just show people who he was. Like, this is who he is.
Starting point is 00:15:35 He worked, he had jobs. You know, he loved to surprise me. Like, he had planned a surprise wedding all by himself and pulled in the family.
Starting point is 00:15:45 He, this is who he was. This was the guy he was. And it was just made into this big, you know, thing because there were 50 shots fired by the police officers. That's really at the bottom line,
Starting point is 00:15:54 that's what it was. It was the 50 shots that were fired by a police officer. is on our wedding day and that was how big it was that was that was what made it like sensationalized but Sean was just like you and me like he was just like any other person there was nothing any different and he was human like he was a human he wasn't just a hashtag he wasn't just a a name you know that's you know it's not just a headline it's a family behind us and is a family who's grieving what made you come up with the title after shock that's production I don't think
Starting point is 00:16:27 I didn't really come up with that. But yeah. I just found an interesting, like, you know, why I wanted to know why was it important for you to tell that story, like the years-long impact of the trauma. Because I think that's something that people don't think about. Yeah, well, that itself, absolutely. That is a thing. And that was part of the reason why I wanted to push forward with the project is because I think the movie shows a time frame of like 06 to 2021. And that's a huge part of my life.
Starting point is 00:17:00 You know, and it's like it's almost two decades that we're talking about of trying to keep his memory alive. But these are what families are going through every day. Like there's so many families like mine and I know them. And I just hope that this project will like encourage other families to tell your stories. There's other ways that we can get the word out. There's other ways that we can show people. Like we didn't receive the justice that we were looking for. And really, accountability would have been that in this case.
Starting point is 00:17:30 I mean, justice would have been him still being here, but accountability is what we were looking for. So this is us holding them accountable. I wanted to know, like, when they were acquitted, did any of those officers apologize? There was a public statement that was issued. It wasn't really directed towards me. During the courtroom, it was very blatant that, you know, they weren't willing to apologize. After they were acquitted, there was like a public statement at their press conference, but that was it. It was nothing personal.
Starting point is 00:18:02 Do we know what happened to those officers? Did they lose their jobs? Do we know, did they get shipped to another precinct? Do we know at all or no? So the officer who fired their initial shots, he was terminated. The rest of them, I believe they were allowed to retire with benefits. Wow. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:18:19 So I don't know where their life is at this point. And, you know, really, I just hope that they understand, like, the weight of what they left behind and what their actions did that night and how generationally how that affects not just me, not just Mr. and Mrs. Bell, but we're now, you know, raising my kids in that. And I'm just, my goal was to make them strong, make them normal, normal girls, you know, who can blend in. And I'm blessed to be able to say that's the case today, you know, my oldest daughter. She's, like, doing her thing, working and has her own apartment. Jordan's at Howard University. And they're just independent young women. And I'm so proud.
Starting point is 00:19:02 They're, like, my best friends. They keep me strong when I feel weak and vice versa. Let me ask one more about the cops. Yeah. I remember one thing that bothered, especially the community in Queens, was that when it first happened, people automatically thought there was going to be a bunch of white cops and it was racist. Right, right. It was a bunch of, it was, I think, one.
Starting point is 00:19:22 white cop and it was minorities. Yeah. How did that feel? Because, you know, you really want to feel like at least somebody that looks like me understands, right? How did that feel during that time? And was that was that. Yeah, that was insane. And I think I even heard that. You know, people like, well, how didn't they, how didn't he know it was cops? They were, you know, they were white. Like, okay, guys, y'all got to pay attention. Read the story. This is not, that's not what happened. Because growing up in South Jamaica, Queens, like, you know about stopping first. You see that. You see detectives jumping out on people. You see, you know, the, you know, the, marked cars you know what the culture was back then um so we're all aware of it we're hyper like
Starting point is 00:20:00 when he arrived at the bachelor party he was pulled over by blue and white a marked car he wasn't even given a ticket i found out this information during the trial i didn't even know that so when he was parking to get to the bachelor party he was pulled over they didn't even give him a ticket they just already have a good day why'd you stop him when he was leaving he was encountered by the cop who was at the club, you know, investigating the club. So it was just, the community in itself was policed in a way that just wasn't there to protect, you know, the people who are from the neighborhood, the people who live here. Like, we go to school here. We work our jobs here. And the neighborhood was shot up. There were homes that were shot. You know, 50 shots. One went
Starting point is 00:20:45 into the air train above at Jamaica Station. And nobody was held accountable for that. And that's really part of the reason that fuels me because with all of that devastation, what was the outcome? And, you know, and I don't know what's going to come next, but all I know is, you know, just this is the same message. We're going to keep pushing forward. There are so many victims who need to be encouraged to tell their stories, and they want to be encouraged to tell their stories. They're not sure how. And I just hope that, you know, this project makes everybody proud. And I want to go back to your daughters.
Starting point is 00:21:21 Like, how did you protect your daughter's emotional world while the country was just discussing your family as just a political kid? Yeah, because they were watching Disney and Nickelodeon. They were doing what kids do. They were going to dance school. They were, you know, playing sports. They were not involved in that. And when they were small, I would take them to the rallies and stuff. But once they were old enough to kind of articulate what's going on, you know, would make sure they were either with grandma or they were, you know, busy doing something.
Starting point is 00:21:48 something else and just kept them focused on what do you want to do like where do you what do you want to become we're going to make you the you know the best you know whatever it is you want to do hair you want to do make it whatever it is you want to become a lawyer you're going to be the best at it and I think that's where my with my girls it was just important that I keep them normal like you know don't where I don't read the comment so I'm not going to introduce them you know what about now because when the movie comes out yeah it's going to you know start that whole conversation all over. So we've, we, we do a lot in private. You know, we, we are very tight. We are very close. My girls are very close to his parents. We, we keep it, you know, really tight. So
Starting point is 00:22:29 we've watched it together in private. And my girls had a lot of questions. And I, and there were things that they didn't even know that after watching it, you know, I'll get calls like, hey, mom, what did this mean? You know, what was that about? And, I can, you know, just remember being 22 and losing him and thinking like, oh my God, how am I going to explain this to him one day? And the one day is here, and now I'm here. And we're having these deep conversations, but now I'm ready to have the conversations.
Starting point is 00:23:02 Because if I had tried to do this 19 years ago, I don't think I would have made it. You didn't even have an understanding of it. Absolutely. I did not have an understanding of it. Now, even though the grief, you know, is still there, and I'm working with a therapist, and you know we're we're dealing with the reality of it it is it's just a matter of it being
Starting point is 00:23:25 like a story that is it's important to our culture it's important to our history and long after i'm gone after shock is going to be here and that's what my goal is just to create something that will last and you know we can you know we can hope that you know this will make history Who stood up for you back then? You know, we've seen Reverend Now and we heard about Jay-Z. Who stood up for the community back then when you needed it the most, right? You support people, you support local people. Who stood up for you during that time?
Starting point is 00:23:58 If anybody. I mean, during that time, there was, like you said, Reverendow, there was a lot of people at NAN, National Action Network was a big deal. Everyone, you know, in my community, there were a lot of elected, every elected official you could think of. some of my friends now who are now in politics like the queensborough president donovan richards and um people like tamika mallory from nan with tamika yeah and these are the people now right who are who've come from that sean bell era and who marched like under river now sharpton and now they're the leaders of the time and saying hey this is what we need to do because this is what happened in the past um so those are some of the people i mean even right now like angela ride that's my girl
Starting point is 00:24:44 I could text Angela right now and she'll give me some, you know, great advice or like, hey, Nicole, you need to check this. You know, my attorney, you know, like female, black female attorney. I'm surrounded by wonderful people that I can call when I'm in need. And I think back then it was the same. You know, there wasn't much of the female presence. It was more of like the politicians. It was like Reverend Al Sharpton. but I think everyone recognized that
Starting point is 00:25:15 that's why you've had like the mother's movement who came out everyone recognized that right Sabrina Fulton and Gwen Carr, Eric Gardner's mother like the movements that came from it because it was more of like this is a political thing and it's like oh how's it political
Starting point is 00:25:32 you know we're not politicians but you know because of the you know the police officers they deemed it as political but I think the most magnificent thing of that is that all of the lives that were affected back then and all the greatness that came from it all of everyone whose lives were affected said hey you know because of what happened to Sean that's the reason why I became this and that means a lot to me
Starting point is 00:25:57 that means a lot jZ did did start a trust fund right he did yes he did yeah yeah yeah college fund for for my girls wow yeah that was a lot that was back in 08 yeah yeah dope is there a moment public or private that best represents the emotional after shock of losing Sean? Public or private? I think that first ever March that happened
Starting point is 00:26:28 in 06 down Fifth Avenue it was massive, right? I didn't even know the gravity of how many people were affected by it. I thought it was just us. And then that first ever march that I attended down Fifth Avenue, it was crazy. I mean, we were ending the march miles down, and we could see all the way back the streets were filled with people. People were outraged.
Starting point is 00:27:01 They were outraged like it was their family member. And I think that's what moved me to say, oh, wow, I'm not alone here. I felt like I was on the island. Like, there was no one who could ever relate to what I had gone through, losing him on my wedding day in that way. But even though, you know, these people didn't lose him that way, everyone was affected. Everyone was outraged. And then still, there was no justice. And I think that's also a part that defines, you know, what we're dealing with here.
Starting point is 00:27:33 Is that no matter how the amount of people, the amount of outrage, the, the, the, the, the, you know, the amount of shots there was still no conviction there and you know what are we going to do with that do you believe in the system after after that I lost my faith in a system after that I'm going to be honest with you I really did and now you see families since then who've gone through similar things and it's the steps that we have to take as family members and you got to go through these measures just to get somewhere and it's just like we're walking down the same line Everyone's walking down the same line looking for a different outcome. And listen, you know, I sat back and kind of watched, you know, families go through this.
Starting point is 00:28:19 It's painful for everyone to think, you know, okay, this is it. This is the time. And then it's the same outcome. We're just watching this whole thing just over and over, just like a vicious cycle. And for me, I mean, Zora Neal Hurston said, if you don't talk about your pain, they'll kill you and say you enjoyed it. And that's what Aftershock is about. We're talking about our pain here. And there's so many people who are in pain.
Starting point is 00:28:46 And people who down the line in future might be in pain. But this is the story for all of us. How did advocating for justice reshape your identity as a woman, a mother, and a leader? How did it advocating for justice? So I feel that it empowered me. It defined, you know, who I am. am. It really helps kind of give me that strength to push me forward. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about our community. But advocacy, it's just a never-ending thing. It's not
Starting point is 00:29:23 something that you can do and turn it off. You know, it's, there's always something to advocate for. It's always something that needs change. So I feel that it's the advocacy in itself, it kind of defined me as a woman. And it made me feel really, like, badass. really yeah what i was going to say what what message did you want to send to the world by forgiving the police officers that shot or did you even forgive me i was going to ask you would you read that i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry did you i was going to ask you where did you see that um so i don't think i've reached that place um because i was there and i've witnessed and then in real time how they felt and like during the trial how they would pass notes and
Starting point is 00:30:14 make jokes this was like almost like a board game you know and we were devastated you know and it takes a lot to say I'm forgiven I have to keep it real with y'all and I have to always keep it real I haven't forgave I can say I'm at peace but no I haven't forgiven I'm not a forgiven person either yeah certain things I just don't understand and he tries to talk me into it. But there's certain things I just can't forgive. And it is what it is. If I had maybe.
Starting point is 00:30:46 I get to that point one day in life. If I had maybe picked up a hint of remorse somewhere, maybe. But I didn't. So I can't put that on them if that's not how they feel. And that's okay. Because, you know, I'll find my way and my girls will be, we're going to, you know, we're going to make it. We're going to be strong.
Starting point is 00:31:03 We're going to support his mom. We're going to support his dad. Like, we're going to be, you know, we're going to be okay. But as far as forgiveness, no. My therapist told me last week, you know, if somebody has done you wrong and you feel like they've harmed you, it is perfectly healthy to say, fuck them.
Starting point is 00:31:19 I'm straight up. And that's it. I love that therapist. Straight up. No, that's how I feel. That's it. That's an emotion. That's your feeling.
Starting point is 00:31:26 Yeah. Who is, who are you now compared to who you were before November 25th, 2000? Oh, man. Who am I now compared to? I mean, right now, it's wow I mean I don't know if I could find the words for it but I think there's really I feel unstoppable I'm going to be honest with you I feel like this is something that um has prepared me
Starting point is 00:31:56 for a life I never had planned I was just looking forward to getting married to Sean and you know the love that we have for each other the love he had for our girls that's really but fueled me and when they took that from me it was if it was extremely personal you know that they did this and it kind of made me look at you know life differently absolutely look at life differently cherishing you know our loved ones loving on everybody around you appreciating life like I'm not a person who complains a lot I'm not a person who takes things for granted I find the greatness and everything and losing Sean
Starting point is 00:32:38 the struggle that we had all of that has made me this person now why and when did you decide to do this movie like what was the thing to be like it's time now so I met Manny Halley back in 2017 and I had a conversation with him that he had my mom was with me let me rewind a little bit
Starting point is 00:33:00 so my mom was with me my mom is like you know she's my biggest champion so she's like okay is this the director oh hey you ever thought about doing a movie about Nicole a movie about Sean my mom was in the airport or we went to a premiere one of his premieres okay sorry I forgot to leave that got to say that um so we met manny my mom was like you know on him like hey you know you ever thought about doing this and was like you know maybe you know I don't think he really knew who we were or whatever but down the line
Starting point is 00:33:28 we had more conversations we talked a little bit more And then production kind of came up with an idea of like, okay, how can we do this? Let's figure out how to, the best way to make this happen. For me, it was always about telling the story. You know, I don't know about the creativity side of it. That's not, I'm not in entertainment. That's not my field. But I have a story.
Starting point is 00:33:48 And it's a story that affected a lot of people, and it's a story that's going to change lives. And if there's a way that we can get this out there, let's do it. So as far as the time frame, I feel like the best time is now. not only because of what we're going through in the community, but just because me personally, mentally, I wasn't in a space to be able to make a movie years ago. I was raising two little girls. I was mourning, going through depression, PTSD.
Starting point is 00:34:15 I couldn't do a movie. How could I find the time? So now it's been almost 20 years. I'm able to talk about this without the tears. I'm able to find the therapy. I'm able to talk to my girls and mentor them. They're independent women exactly, you know, what I pray for. Now's the time.
Starting point is 00:34:37 There's no better time than do it right now. Were you overly critical of who played y'all? I would think I was more overly critical of who plays Sean as opposed to who played me. To me, that was really more important. Is that true, manny? What was the pause? Y'all saw that? I did.
Starting point is 00:34:59 Anyone get in trouble? why why shan in particular um because he's not here to speak for himself so we got to we got to do this right he's not here to tell his story so um the person has to you know you got to kind of have his aura you got to have his vibe you know you have to be able to on screen um make it real you know make it feel like him and that was for me that was the most important part and i think raven's amazing Raven's the character who played my role when I saw her audition tape she made me cry
Starting point is 00:35:32 She made me tell up too Yeah She caught every emotion Absolutely and once I saw that I said okay It's her I can people honor Sean's story In a way that leads to action
Starting point is 00:35:44 Not just simply So in a way that leads to action So we need We need everyone to For one Go out and vote for your local elections In your local elections Like do what you can
Starting point is 00:35:55 Do your part you know personally this is you know something that we all have to continue to to shine a light on you know whether it's his story or it's you know an injustice that you know of in your area like let's support each other join an organization if you don't see an organization that that you that resonates with you start an organization there are many things that you can do to to advocate and it doesn't always have to be just in Sean's name but get be a part of some kind of movement get out there be a part of a movement and you know for us there there aren't any more legal you know measures that I can take I've
Starting point is 00:36:33 exhausted those so this is the next step for me and I want everybody to get out there and go see it you know and tell the story past the story along and we're going to be at colleges you know we're going to we're going to share the story with the next generation who doesn't know Sean and hasn't heard about this story and that's really it and if you was walk away with just one lesson from after shock what do you open this one lesson for after shock is that um you cannot let life like take you out there are things that's going to happen and you have to find your way find your way to make it through um endurance resilience is life like we're all going to get knocked down at some point right and it may not be
Starting point is 00:37:19 to this magnitude and i pray it's not to this magnitude but life is going to come at you and you have to find your way whatever your way is to get over it and to when I say get over it I mean to get over the hump not to get you know not to move out of the way but to get over that hump and push through and support your people like you know this is we need that support I'm I'm thankful for people like many you know and his team who are not you know affiliated with any type of justice you know organization organizations or anything, but he said, hey, this is something that's important, and we want to get behind you on this. And I'm just really thankful for that. And I think everyone needs to
Starting point is 00:38:06 find, you know, whatever your source is. What is your source? And just feed that and keep going and don't give up. Absolutely. Well, definitely check it out this Friday, Aftershock, the Nicole P. Bell story. And thank you for sharing your story. Thank you. You all are great. I know it's tough too. But it's tough. We definitely always. always sending you healing energy, Nicole. Absolutely, healing energy. And, Mani, you too. I'm always praying.
Starting point is 00:38:30 Me and my wife is always praying for you, Mani, so we love you. And thank you so much for sharing it again. If y'all need anything, please let us know. And thank you so much. And it's the theaters everywhere. AMC theaters. It's select AMC Theaters nationwide.
Starting point is 00:38:42 So if you go on fendango.com, you'll see it airs. It releases November 28th and then on digital as of December 15th. All right. Nicole Bell, it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Take your ass up.
Starting point is 00:38:57 The Breakfast Club. You're on finish or y'all's done? On this week's episode of Next Chapter, I, T.D.J, sit down with Denzel Washington, a two-time Academy Award-winning actor and cultural icon. I don't take any credit for it. I just didn't put me first. I just put God first, and he's carrying me. Listen to the next chapter podcast on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever.
Starting point is 00:39:26 you get your podcast. New episodes drop weekly. Hey there, Dr. Jesse Mills here. I'm the director of the men's clinic at UCLA, and I want to tell you about my new podcast called The Mailroom. And I'm Jordan, the show's producer. And like most guys, I haven't been to the doctor in way too long. I'll be asking the questions we probably should be asking, but aren't. Every week, we're breaking down the world of men's health from testosterone and fitness to diets and fertility. We'll talk science without the jargon and get your real answers to the stuff you actually wonder about. So check out the mailroom on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your favorite shows.
Starting point is 00:40:03 What up, y'all? It's your boy, Kevin on stage. I want to tell you about my new podcast called Not My Best Moment, where I talk to artists, athletes, entertainers, creators, friends, people I admire who had massive success about their massive failures. What did they mess up on? What is their heartbreak? And what did they learn from it? I got judged horribly. The judges were like, you're trash.
Starting point is 00:40:26 how you got on the show. Check out Not My Best Moment with me kept on stage on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcast. Hi, I'm Dr. Priyanko Wally. And I'm Hurricane DeBolu. On our new podcast Health Stuff, we demystify your burning health questions.
Starting point is 00:40:42 You'll hear us being completely honest about her own health. My residency colon was like a cry for help, honestly. And you'll hear candid advice and personal stories from experts who want to make health care more human. I feel that I never felt like I truly belonged in medicine. We want to make health less confusing and maybe even a little fun. Find health stuff on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Starting point is 00:41:10 The Big Take podcast from Bloomberg News keeps you on top of the biggest stories of the day. My fellow Americans, this is Liberation Day. Stories that move markets. Chair Powell opened the door to this first interest rate cut. Impact politics, change business. This is a really stunning development for the AI world and how you think about your bottom line. Listen to the big take from Bloomberg News
Starting point is 00:41:35 every weekday afternoon on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.