Director Kathryn Bigelow And John Boyega Say Race Talks Are 'More Vital Than Ever'
You'll remember last month when John Boyega called out Game of Thrones' diversity problem, saying: 'I ain't paying money to always see one type of person on-screen.'
Well now Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow, who recently shot Boyega's up-coming film Detroit, has stated that discussing race in the US is 'more vital than ever'.
Detroit is based on the Algiers Motel incident during Detroit's 1967 12th Street Riot and has just been released in the wake of the violent clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia. On its release date, Bigalow admitted it was important to face racism 'head-on'.
'To do nothing is not an option,' she explained, reports the BBC.
Discussing the white-supremacist led protests in Virginia on Saturday, the filmmaker - who became the first woman to receive an Academy Award for Best Director in 2010 - said: 'It's just a horrific tragedy and I feel the urgency to have a conversation about race in America is even more vital than ever.
'Even though this story [Detroit's storyline] takes place 50 years ago, it feels, sadly, very much like today and therefore tomorrow. Until there's a meaningful conversation about race in America, I'm worried these events will keep happening.
'If there's the chance for the film to generate a dialogue that's meaningful and positive and can generate some transformation, that would of course be my greatest aspiration.
'Any opportunity to meet head-on with the pervasiveness of racism is really important,' she added.
I'm worried these events will keep happening
Speaking at the premiere of the film in London on Wednesday, Boyega commented: 'We all have a voice and we all have a responsibility to speak out.
'It's so weird, the timing of everything - but now it makes this movie very necessary, for perspective and also to see just how little has been done, and to hopefully spark a positive conversation.'
Following Donald Trump's controversial reactions to the Charlottesville protests - in which he said there was 'blame on both sides' - Bigelow discussed the possibility of the president of the US watching her new film, telling the Guardian: 'I'd like him to see the film. I'd like to see how he reacts.'
Us too, Kathryn.
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