Michelle Rodriguez has clarified remarks she made regarding race and superhero roles.
When asked by paparazzi if she was going to be the next Green Lantern on Friday, the “Furious 7” star said, “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. Because of this whole ‘minorities in Hollywood’ thing. It’s so stupid. Stop stealing all the white people’s superheroes. Make up your own.”
On Saturday, Michelle took to Facebook to explain her remarks.
“I want to clarify about my comment yesterday. I stuck my foot in my mouth once again, and I said that people should stop trying to steal white people’s superheroes,” she said in video titled “About that whole superhero thing” posted on her Facebook page. “I guess it got taken out of context because a lot of people got offended, or whatever. But I have a tendency to speak without a filter, so sorry about that.”
The 36-year-old star said she’s tired of Hollywood attempting to diversify by recycling existing roles, and thinks it’s time for some new ideas.
“What I really meant was, ultimately at the end of the day there’s a language, and the language that you speak in Hollywood is successful franchise. And I think that there are many cultures in Hollywood that are not white that can come up with their own mythology,” she said. “We all get it from the same reservoir of life… I’m just saying that instead of trying to turn a girl character into a guy or instead of trying to turn a white character into a black character or Latin character, I think that people should stop being lazy, and that people should actually make an effort in Hollywood to develop their own mythology.
“It’s time to stop. Stop trying to take what’s already there and fit a culture into it. I think it’s time for us to write our own mythology and our own story – every culture,” she continued. “So that’s what I meant. And I’m sorry if it came off rude or stupid – that’s not what I meant. Cheers.”
Michelle can be seen alongside Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and the late Paul Walker in “Furious 7” when the movie hits theaters on April 3.
— Erin O’Sullivan
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