QUEEN LATIFAH gave the cast and crew something to look forward to every Friday on the set of her new film MAD MONEY - she gave cash away.

The rapper-turned-singer/actress came up with a "five dollar Friday" ruse that would give runners, camera operators and interns the chance to go home for the weekend with a big cash bonus.

The generous Chicago star explains, "It was actually my way of giving back to the crew. Sometimes you get to throw a barbecue or do something special but usually I know that the crew people are working really hard and everybody is not making the same amount of money we are.

"So we do this five dollar Fridays thing and everybody writes their name on a five dollar bill and puts it into a bucket and at the end of the day somebody picks a bill out and whoever’s name is on the bill wins all the money." And Latifah, real name Dana Owens, had a way of sweetening the deal further: "I’d double the money every Friday.

It could be a lot of money, so don’t tell the IRS (tax authorities at the Internal Revenue Service)."