Latest news with #NumberOneontheCallSheet:
Forbes
05-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
John Boyega Calls Out ‘Star Wars' For Its Overwhelming Whiteness
John Boyega as Finn from The Force Awakens In a new Apple TV documentary, actor John Boyega had some harsh words for the Star Wars universe. The call-out is as much directed at the creators of the franchise and its fans. In the docuseries Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, Boyega said: Boyega added: This may be true for some fans, but I think Boyega was more on-point in 2020 when he told GQ Magazine, 'What I would say to Disney is do not bring out a Black character, market them to be much more important in the franchise than they are and then have them pushed to the side. It's not good. I'll say it straight up.' The fundamental problem most Star Wars fans had with Boyega's character, disillusioned Stormtrooper, Finn, in the Disney sequel trilogy, was that he really didn't have much to do. Marketing made it look like he'd be a really important character and then he just wasn't. One of my biggest problems with the sequels is how flimsy the core 'friend group' was compared to the original trilogy. Finn, Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) were never given the opportunity to really gel the same way that Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) were. They were separated from one another for the vast majority of the three films rather than given the kinds of great adventures and bonding moments that the original trilogy gave its core trio, and that led to much less compelling camaraderie and characters. Finn should have been given more to do and a more important role in the story that kept him nearer to the central conflict. He should have had Force powers at the very least, which is what the teasers certainly indicated. Instead, he was tossed aside in the second film, given a new buddy to hang out with rather than Rey or Poe, and basically made irrelevant to the plot. The same can be said for Poe Dameron, whose character never really developed in any direction throughout the trilogy. We never got the tension between these characters that was so palpable between Han and Leia, or Han and Luke, etc. though I suppose we never got the awkward 'Hey, I'm actually your sister, how about that kiss we shared?' moment either. The good news is that some new Star Wars content has been able to create more diversity in a way that feels organic and not like pandering at all. Namely, Andor, which is the most diverse Star Wars offering to-date, even more so than The Acolyte, which was roundly criticized for prioritizing messaging over storytelling. Andor is brilliant and effortlessly diverse, with people of color, queer characters and some of the best female heroes and villains in Star Wars we've seen. It's a great example of how you can incorporate diversity while still focusing on telling a great story. Whether or not Star Wars is too white, John Boyega and Finn certainly deserved better. Everyone deserved better than what we got with the Star Wars sequel trilogy. The Force Awakens had real potential to kick off a brilliant new era in Star Wars, but it was squandered thanks to poor management and the total lack of a coherent overarching story between that film, The Last Jedi and The Rise Of Skywalker. Just another cinematic tragedy in a galaxy far, far away.
Khaleej Times
03-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Khaleej Times
Eddie Murphy recalls how Sidney Poitier advised him not to star in 'Malcolm X'
"Actor and comedian Eddie Murphy opened up about some advice Sidney Poitier once gave him that left him surprised. In Apple TV+'s new documentary, Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, he said the Oscar winner advised him not to join the cast of 1992's Malcom X. The film was first directed by Norman Jewison, the director of Poitier's In the Heat of the Night, who cast Denzel Washington in the starring role before Spike Lee took over as director. "They were talking about doing Malcolm X," Murphy recalled. "Norman Jewison was putting it together. They were gonna use Th e Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley. And they approached me about playing Alex Haley. Around that same time, I bumped into Sidney Poitier at something, and I asked him, 'Yeah, I'm thinking about playing Alex Haley!' And Sidney Poitier said, 'You are not Denzel [Washington], and you are not Morgan [Freeman]. You are a breath of fresh air, and don't [mess] with that!'." Murphy admitted he "didn't know" if Poitier's advice "was an insult or a compliment", but was just shocked to be compared to Washington and Freeman. "I was like, 'What?'" he added. In the documentary, Murphy also spoke about being different from the leading black men on the big screen. "I was in uncharted waters. For Sidney and all those guys, when I showed up, it was something kinda new," Murphy said, adding, "They didn't have a reference for me, they couldn't give me advice, 'cause I was 20, 21 years old, and my audience was the mainstream, all of everywhere. My movies [were] all around the world, and they had never had that with a young Black person. So nobody could give me advice, really. Everything broke really big and really fast." While Lee's Malcom X didn't include Haley as a character, the film ended up being a huge critical success, earning two Oscar nominations: best actor for Washington and best costume design for Ruth E. Carter, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Why Eddie Murphy Says Sidney Poitier Advised Him Not to Star in ‘Malcolm X'
Eddie Murphy is opening up about some advice Sidney Poitier once gave him that left him surprised. In Apple TV+'s new documentary, Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, the Beverly Hills Cop actor shared that the Oscar winner told him not to star in 1992's Malcom X. At the time, the film was initially being helmed by Norman Jewison, Poitier's In the Heat of the Night director, who cast Denzel Washington in the lead role before Spike Lee took over as director. More from The Hollywood Reporter 'American Gangster' Drug Kingpin Frank Lucas to Be Focus of Documentary (Exclusive) George Clooney's 'Good Night and Good Luck' Sets New Record Weekly Gross for a Broadway Play 'Othello' Director Kenny Leon and Denzel Washington Are "Absolutely" Discussing a Potential Film Adaptation 'They were talking about doing Malcolm X,' Murphy recalled. 'Norman Jewison was putting it together. They were gonna use The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley. And they approached me about playing Alex Haley. Around that same time, I bumped into Sidney Poitier at something, and I asked him, 'Yeah, I'm thinking about playing Alex Haley!' And Sidney Poitier said, 'You are not Denzel [Washington], and you are not Morgan [Freeman]. You are a breath of fresh air, and don't fuck with that!'' Murphy admitted he 'didn't know' if Poitier's advice 'was an insult or a compliment,' but was just shocked to be compared to Washington and Freeman. 'I was like, 'What?'' he added. Elsewhere in Black Leading Men in Hollywood, Murphy speculated as to why Poitier didn't put him in the same group as Washington and Freeman. 'I was in uncharted waters. For Sidney and all those guys, when I showed up, it was something kinda new,' the Dreamgirls actor said. 'They didn't have a reference for me, they couldn't give me advice, 'cause I was 20, 21 years old, and my audience was the mainstream — all of everywhere. My movies [were] all around the world, and they had never had that with a young Black person. So nobody could give me advice, really. Everything broke really big and really fast.' While Lee's Malcom X didn't include Haley as a character, the film ended up being a huge critical success, earning two Oscar nominations: best actor for Washington and best costume design for Ruth E. Carter. Best of The Hollywood Reporter The 10 Best Baseball Movies of All Time, Ranked 20 Times the Oscars Got It Wrong The Best Anti-Fascist Films of All Time
The Independent
31-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
John Boyega laments Star Wars for ‘being in the most whitest, elite space'
John Boyega has hit out at prejudiced Star Wars fans following the racism he experienced when he starred in the franchise in 2015. The 33-year-old British actor debuted as former Stormtrooper Finn in The Force Awakens, but was almost instantly targeted by bigoted online fans of the sci-fi epic, who also criticised women in the cast. His co-stars Daisy Ridley and Kelly Marie Tran – the latter of whom became the first woman of colour to have a leading role in the franchise – received a huge amount of abuse from fans who were angry with the inclusive casting choice. Speaking in a new documentary called Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, Boyega condemned the fans that rallied against his role in the films. He said: 'Lemme tell ya, Star Wars always had the vibe of being in the most whitest, elite space. It's a franchise that's so white that a Black person existing in [it] was something." Continuing, Boyega explained that one of the biggest problems with some Star Wars fans was that they tried to make a big deal out of having just a few Black actors in the films. 'You can always tell it's something when some Star Wars fans try to say, 'Well, we had Lando Calrissian and had Samuel L Jackson!,'' he said. 'It's like telling me how many cookie chips are in the cookie dough. It's like, they just scattered that in there, bro!' 'They're okay with us playing the best friend, but once we touch their heroes, once we lead, once we trailblaze, it's like, 'Oh my God, it's just a bit too much! They're pandering,'" he added. Boyega isn't entirely critical of his time on Star Wars, calling it a 'fundamental moment' in his career. 'We waited months for that. When that big call came in, that's that call that all those stars talk about that changed their life and stuff. It's like, 'That's it? That's the call!' It's such an attack on reality.' 'I got in a taxi and told the driver. That was the first person I told. My mom's not here, my dad's not here, we're sharing in this moment, bro. 'Bro, I just got Star Wars!' He was like, 'Oh, yeah, congratulations mate. Great, that'll be 45 pounds, please.' It was that kinda moment. But I had to share. I know the rules were like, 'Don't share.' But come on, man, you just offered me the opportunity of a lifetime!" The Attack the Block star has previously criticised Star Wars by suggesting that the white characters in the sequel trilogy, played by Ridley and Adam Driver were given more nuance and attention. In a 2020 interview with GQ magazine, Boyega said: 'You get yourself involved in projects and you're not necessarily going to like everything. 'What I would say to Disney is: do not bring out a Black character, market them to be much more important in the franchise than they are and then have them pushed to the side. It's not good. I'll say it straight up.'
The Independent
30-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Eddie Murphy says Sidney Poitier urged him not to star in Oscar-nominated film
Eddie Murphy has shared the advice Sidney Poitier gave him after he was approached to star in the 1992 film Malcolm X. Murphy, 63, who shot to fame on Saturday Night Live before establishing himself as a lead man with starring roles in The Golden Child and Harlem Nights, was steered away from the role by Poitier. In the new documentary Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, Murphy recalled the confusing career advice from the legendary In the Heat of the Night star. 'They were talking about doing Malcolm X [and] Norman Jewison (who directed Fiddler on the Roof and Moonstruck) was putting it together,' he recalled. 'They were gonna use The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Hayley and they approached me about playing Alex Haley.' Murphy continued: 'Around the same time, I bumped into Sidney Poitier at something and I asked him, 'Yeah, I'm thinking about playing Alex Hayley.' Poitier said, 'You are not Denzel, and you are not Morgan. You are a breath of fresh air, and don't f*** with that,'' the actor recalled, per Entertainment Weekly. 'I didn't know if it was an insult or a compliment,' Murphy admitted. 'I was like, 'What?'' Murphy, Freeman and Washington were all finding their way as Hollywood leading men at the same time. While Washington was eventually cast in Malcolm X, Murphy went on to star in a series of much-loved comedies, including Boomerang, Nutty Professor and Dr. Dolittle. Washington won Best Actor at the 1993 Oscars for his role as the civil rights activist in the film ultimately directed by Spike Lee, which did not include Hayley's character despite being based on his book. When reflecting on why Poitier saw him as a different type of actor to his peers, Murphy said: 'I was in uncharted waters. For Sidney and all those guys, when I showed up, it was something kinda new. 'They didn't have a reference for me, they couldn't give me advice, because I was 20, 21 years old, and my audience was the mainstream – all of everywhere. 'My movies [were] all around the world, and they had never had that with a young Black person. So nobody could give me advice, really. Everything broke really big and really fast.' Murphy said singer James Brown also offered him a career tip: 'He told me I should stop cursing,' he revealed. 'He said, 'You wanna be in this business for a long time? Stop that cursing.'' Brown also recommended that if Murphy had made a million dollars he bury his money in the woods so the government couldn't take it from him. 'I was like, 'But can't the government take your land?' and he said, 'But they won't know where the money is,' Murphy claimed. 'That's a true story.' He added: 'That's the kind of advice I used to get. We didn't have a lot of elders.' Last year, Murphy reflected on how 'racist' jokes were made at his expense on Saturday Night Live in the Nineties, despite him being 'the biggest thing that ever came off that show'. One such joke occurred when comedian David Spade, as part of his 'Hollywood Minute' sketch, showed a photo of Murphy, stating: 'Look children, it's a falling star. Make a wish.' Murphy said of the comment: 'It was like: 'Yo, it's in-house! I'm one of the family, and you're f***ing with me like that?' It hurt my feelings like that.' The actor said the joke 'was personal', adding: 'It was like, 'Yo, how could you do that?' My career? Really? A joke about my career? So I thought that was a cheap shot. And it was kind of, I thought – I felt it was racist.'
