Though David Oyelowo’s star turn as Martin Luther King Jr. in “Selma” is winning him rave reviews and awards consideration, he’s one of the few black actors in such a position leading up to what could become “the whitest Oscars” in years. But Oyelowo has hope that things are changing, he told HuffPost Live’s Marc Lamont Hill on Tuesday: To be perfectly honest, I think not up until recently has Hollywood come around to the idea and the acceptance that there is an audience out there for black protagonists at the center of their own narratives in big films of this nature. I think in the past, films dealing with a historical subject matter, …
Though David Oyelowo’s star turn as Martin Luther King Jr. in “Selma” is winning him rave reviews and awards consideration, he’s one of the few black actors in such a position leading up to what could become “the whitest Oscars” in years. But Oyelowo has hope that things are changing, he told HuffPost Live’s Marc Lamont Hill on Tuesday:
To be perfectly honest, I think not up until recently has Hollywood come around to the idea and the acceptance that there is an audience out there for black protagonists at the center of their own narratives in big films of this nature. I think in the past, films dealing with a historical subject matter, felt a need to have a white character in order to lure the audience in. I think “Selma” was a big beneficiary of “The Butler” and “12 Years A Slave” doing so well last year, and I just feel like there’s a sea change at hand.
Watch Oyelowo’s full HuffPost Live conversation here.
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‘Selma’ Star David Oyelowo Says A ‘Sea Change’ Is Brewing For Black Films In Hollywood