He said, “We got through that, you know. And I’m really proud of her to go through that and to not get the role, but still come to the premiere.” Ice Cube also said, “If we found a better Cube, then we had to go with the best man for the job. That’s how acting and movie shoots work. So I couldn’t give it to him – and I wouldn’t if I could because that’s easy.” When the studio asked Jaden to audition for a tenth time, his mom told them he was no longer available — which pushed the director to finally tell the studio that “he was emotionally incapable of making the film without Jaden.” “He grew up during the Depression, and he had to work hard for everything, including his early years as an actor,” Scott said. “He believes you have to earn your way in life and I agree, although there were a lot of times when I would be angry with him because I knew he could have helped me out with money.” Milla said, “Not only did she bring all this talent to the table, but she was very professional and very well-behaved on set and was very serious about what she was doing. I didn’t have to play the mom card or anything, she got it. It was unbelievable.” Melanie was attacked near her eye and had to have facial reconstructive surgery.