John Boyega Reacts to Idris Elba Refusing to Call Himself a Black Actor: ‘We Should Fixate on Who’s Putting Actors Into Boxes’
variety.comZack Sharf Idris Elba ignited a firestorm on social media after he told Esquire UK that he has stopped calling himself a “Black actor” because it creates limitations for his career.
While some accused Elba of renouncing his Blackness, others came to the “Luther” actor’s defense and agreed with him regarding Hollywood’s penchant to put labels on and stereotype Black actors. “Star Wars” alum John Boyega recently took to Twitter to tell his followers that Elba’s detractors were having the wrong takeaway from his comment. “I think we should fixate on who is typecasting and putting actors in boxes because of this,” Boyega wrote. “Not on making weird adjustments for them.
We continuously focus on what we have to do so they don’t do this or that. Very worrying. We BLACK and that’s that.” Elba himself took to Twitter to tell off his detractors, writing, “There isn’t a soul on this earth that can question whether I consider myself a BLACK MAN or not.
Being an ‘actor’ is a profession, like being an ‘architect,’ they are not defined by race. However, If YOU define your work by your race, that is your Perogative.
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