It’s not every day you hear the dumbest thing in existence. No, that isn’t a hyperbole. This is news that explains itself. It’s so dumb, so laughable, so ludicrous that all I can do is present the facts to you as you’re bewildered at how moronic Hollywood executives can be.
So Harriet came out earlier this month to modest success. It’s been garnering some awards buzz, mostly for its lead actress Cynthia Erivo. However, if a studio executive in the 90’s had his way, then Harriet Tubman, who I would like to stress is black, would have been played by Julia Roberts.
When director Allen Howard approached studios in 1994 with a pitch for Harriet, his script recieved plenty of praise from studio executives, but one had a casting suggestion for him. Harriet Tubman should have been played by Julia Roberts who, I feel like I shouldn’t need to say this but apparently I do, is white. When Howard said that it obviously would not work and would be racially insensitive, the studio executive said, “That was so long ago. No one will know that.”
Hollywood exec suggested Julia Roberts play Harriet Tubman, biopic screenwriter says – [NBCNews]
