Will Smith Explains Why He Passed up ‘Django Unchained’

Photo Credit: The Weinstein Company/Columbia Pictures
Photo Credit: The Weinstein Company/Columbia Pictures

By: Amanda Anderson-Niles

Actor Jamie Foxx may have nailed the role in Django Unchained, but it’s been confirmed in many interviews that he wasn’t director Quentin Taratino’s first choice for the role. There were multiple reports suggesting he considered both strong actors Will Smith and Denzel Washington, but in the end Jamie Foxx nabbed the role and Denzel’s daughter ended up with her first movie role in the hit film. Comedian Katt Williams and other critics of the film suggested Jamie only got the part because other actors turned down the role, and the comedian suggested that this happened because most of black Hollywood wasn’t in support of the movie. While the movie performed strong in the theaters and got glowing reviews and even oscar nominations (Christoph Waltz even received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor); some people in the black community (Spike Lee included) felt the film had a harsh racist tone that they just couldn’t support. Regardless, in the end Jamie did a beautiful job with the role and proved once again that he is without a doubt an Oscar toting actor. Although Will Smith claims he supported the film, in a recent interview he explained in a way most people are saying is pretty arrogant, why he decided to turn down the role. He tells Entertainment Weekly:

“Django wasn’t the lead, so it was like, I need to be the lead. The other character was the lead! I was like, ‘No, Quentin, please, I need to kill the bad guy!I thought it was brilliant. Just not for me.”

 

We’re not sure why Will feels Django wasn’t the lead character of the film considering Jamie was billed as the star of the movie and the movie was even named after the character. Regardless, it looks like the right person got the role and Will’s career seems just fine without taking the part.

15 comments

  1. Uh Will who cares bruh? Jamie killed the role so it was your loss anyway. I love Will but he sounded really arrogant here.

  2. Sounds fishy. Kind of like he was making up an excuse and the real answer isn’t politically correct. I think Will was too scared to play the part because he didn’t want to anger his white fans. Jamie on the other hand has won his Oscar already and doesn’t give a f-ck. Lol.

    1. Agreed! I think he didn’t want to piss off his white fans either! Same thing for Denzel. Jamie has an Oscar but he also doesn’t care about pleasing people. That’s one thing I respect about him as an actor.

  3. LOL at Will. Django was clearly the star of the film. He’s saving face but could have came up with a better lie than this one.

  4. BS. He didn’t take the role because he would have pissed off his white fan base. I don’t think he would have pulled the role off like Jamie did anyway.

  5. I think most of us are on the same page. This was a political excuse and not true at all. People say he turned it down because he didn’t want to be in the middle of the controversy. In the end, the right person played the role anyway.

  6. I love Will but he sounds dumb here. It didn’t even make it any sense. Clearly he didn’t want the role because of the talk surrounding the plot. It’s understandable.

  7. Will sounds crazy. How is the movie titled DJANGO UNCHAINED and the character wasn’t the lead? I don’t like Will as an actor no way so I’m glad he wasn’t in the movie at all!

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

YOU MAY LIKE

Discover more from Urban Belle Magazine

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading