BET Hosts Worldwide Premiere of Explosive Urban Drama 'BACK IN THE DAY' Starring Ving Rhames and Ja Rule

BET Hosts Worldwide Premiere of Explosive Urban Drama 'BACK IN THE DAY' Starring Ving Rhames and Ja Rule

Telecast Set for Friday, May 13 at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on BET; DVD Hits Stores on May 24th

Pam Grier, Tatyana Ali, Giancarlo Esposito, Frank Langella and Tia Carrere Round Out All-Star Ensemble Cast

WASHINGTON, April 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is being issued by BET (Black Entertainment Television):

WHAT: Emmy Award(R) winner Ving Rhames (Mission Impossible) and platinum-selling rapper Ja Rule (Assault on Precinct 13) star in the complex urban drama BACK IN THE DAY, making its worldwide premiere on BET on Friday, May 13 at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT. Directed by James Hunter, this gritty tale of love and redemption features an all-star ensemble cast including Pam Grier (The L Word), Frank Langella (Unscripted), Tatyana Ali (Beauty Shop), Giancarlo Esposito, (Law & Order), Tia Carrere (Supernova), and Joe Morton (Ali).

In BACK IN THE DAY, Ja Rule portrays Reggie Cooper, a young man from the rough side of the tracks who lives with his divorced, affluent father (Esposito) in order to avoid the gang activity that almost claimed his teenage life in his mother's neighborhood (Grier). When Reggie reconnects with a recently paroled friend from his past (Rhames), he slips back into a life of crime with fatal consequences. Reggie becomes involved in the murder of a local preacher (Morton) and in aftermath of this crime, he falls in love with the preacher's daughter (Ali). Ultimately, he must choose between losing everything he cares about and his lifelong loyalty to his oldest friend. BACK IN THE DAY chronicles the powerful story of one man's search for personal redemption.

PREMIERE TELECAST: Friday, May 13 @ 7:30 p.m. ET/PT

ENCORE PRESENTATION: Saturday, May 14 @ 11:00 p.m. ET/PT

DVD DEBUT: Tuesday, May 24, 2005

ABOUT BET

BET, a subsidiary of Viacom, Inc. (NYSE: VIA; VIA.B), is the nation's leading television network providing quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs programming for the African-American audience. The BET Network reaches more than 80 million households according to Nielsen media research, and can be seen in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. BET is a dominant consumer brand in the urban marketplace with a diverse group of branded businesses: BET.com, the Number 1 Internet portal for African Americans; BET Digital Networks - BET Jazz, BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Event Productions, specializing in a full range of event production services, including event management, venue selection, talent recruitment, sound, lighting and stage production; and BET Books, the nation's leading publisher of African-American themed romance novels under the Arabesque imprint which also publishes compelling fiction under the Sepia imprint and inspirational fiction and nonfiction under the New Spirit imprint.

ABOUT DEJ PRODUCTIONS

DEJ Productions Inc. is a leading independent entertainment company that acquires and distributes product in the theatrical, home entertainment and television arenas. DEJ Productions is a wholly owned subsidiary of Blockbuster Inc. Since its inception in 1999, DEJ Productions has commanded one of the largest acquisitions and distribution infrastructures in independent film, with an average of 75 films a year. Among them, DEJ Productions acquired all English-speaking rights, including those in North America, to the 2003 Academy Award(R) winning film Monster, starring Charlize Theron. DEJ also co-financed and produced Crash with Stratus Films, written and directed by Paul Haggis, which will be released by Lions Gate Films later this year. DEJ Productions Inc. is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

ABOUT FIRST LOOK HOME ENTERTAINMENT

First Look Home Entertainment, a division of First Look Media, specializes in diverse independent films and special interest programs that include First Look Pictures theatrical art house and foreign releases, as well as video premieres and genre-specific films. These diverse titles have helped First Look Home Entertainment grow rapidly. Revenues since inception of the division have increased on average 77% per year. The current home entertainment release schedule includes the upcoming Sundance hit, September Tapes, National Lampoons Blackball (starring Vince Vaughn), and the recently released charming romantic comedy, Perfect Opposites (starring Piper Perabo, Martin Hendersen, Jennifer Tilly, Artie Lange), First Look Pictures' theatrical release, Mayor of the Sunset Strip (starring Rodney Bingenheimer, and featuring Coldplay, No Doubt, Cher, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, Oasis, Courtney Love, to name a few), the 15 year television series hit, Unsolved Mysteries (featuring acclaimed host, Robert Stack), Stateside (starring Rachael Leigh Cook, Jonathan Tucker, Val Kilmer, Carrie Fisher, Joe Mantegna), and The Last Sign (starring Andie MacDowell and Tim Roth).

Source: BET (Black Entertainment Television)

CONTACT: Tosha Whitten Griggs, +1-818-655-6712, tosha.whitten- griggs@bet.net, or Zabrina Horton, +1-818-655-6737, Zabrina.horton@bet.net, both of BET Corporate Communications; or Ava DuVernay, +1-323-860-7060, ava@dvapr.com, or Ellene Miles, +1-323-860-7060, ellene@dvapr.com, both of the DuVernay Agency for BET

Web site: http://www.bet.com/

NOTE TO EDITORS: Screeners and artwork are available upon request; contact Zabrina Horton, BET Corporate Communications at (818) 655-6737 or zabrina.horton@bet.net. For distribution information, contact Ellene Miles, The Duvernay Agency at (323) 860-7060 or ellene@dvapr.com.

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