Another actor has entered the ongoing conversation about black British actors versus African-American actors. Samuel L. Jackson got the ball rolling when he complained about how a black British actor doesn’t have the same lived history with interracial dating in America, and Sam’s comments were particularly about Daniel Kaluuya in Get Out. I still believe that Sam was not “slamming” or “shading” Kaluuya, by the way. Kaluuya responded in kind, basically saying that he doesn’t want to put in a position where he has to defend his blackness. Sam later clarified his comments and throughout it all, I felt like it was an interesting conversation to have, as opposed to two actors sniping at each other.
I also made the point that many black British actors come to America to work because – despite #OscarsSoWhite and the systemic racial inequalities of Hollywood – there are simply more opportunities for black actors in America. The British film and TV industry is thriving, but the Brits thrive on all-white costume dramas and period pieces which conveniently feature whitewashed history. Well, as I said, another actor has chimed in. This time it’s Thandie Newton, a British actress who now lives full-time in LA.
British period dramas may be entertaining, but they simply don’t have good roles for people like Thandie Newton. In an interview with the Sunday Times Magazine, Newton, who now lives in Los Angeles, explained that the popularity of historical dramas, which tend to focus on white characters, means that it’s hard to find roles as an actor of color. “I love being [in the U.K.], but I can’t work, because I can’t do Downton Abbey, can’t be in Victoria, can’t be in Call the Midwife,” the Westworld actress said. “Well, I could, but I don’t want to play someone who’s being racially abused.”
“I’m not interested in that, don’t want to do it,” Newton, who will soon appear in the Star Wars Han Solo movie and also signed on for a role in the Brit cop drama Line of Duty, added. “There just seems to be a desire for stuff about the royal family, stuff from the past, which is understandable, but it just makes it slim pickings for people of colour.”
Newton’s fellow British actor David Oyelowo recently made a similar critique of the British film and TV industry, though he added that people making period films and shows tend to ignore nonwhite British history. “People of color have been expunged from Britain’s history,” the Selma and United Kingdom star said. “One of the best ways to illustrate how integrated we are historically is to have a piece of entertainment that people can also learn from while they are watching it. That is why I am hellbent on period drama: We need the context so we can build, and then go on to grow.”
I get it. And Thandie’s comments echo David Oyelowo’s comments and Idris Elba’s comments and Daniel Kaluuya’s comments and who knows? I kind of think Chiwetel Ejiofor probably feels the same way too, although Chiwetel still lives in London for the most part (because he manages to get a lot of stage work too). When a British film or TV show does feature an actor of color – I’m thinking about Rose’s lover in Downton Abbey – it does feel like the worst kind of Old-Empire tokenism.
So… when will #BaftasSoWhite become a thing? Did you know that Denzel Washington has never been nominated for a BAFTA? Morgan Freeman has never been BAFTA-nominated either. Chiwetel did get nominated – and he won! – for a Bafta for 12 Years a Slave. As I was researching this story, I came across this piece from 1996, when black actors protested that year’s BAFTAs because of the lack of diversity. This has been a thing for decades. Maybe it’s time for the British film and television industry to actively search for and greenlight projects which would employ some of their talented actors of color.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
