In a recent interview with Allure, Zoe opened up about getting criticism for the Nina Simone biopic and she feels people have been questioning her blackness.
The actress also feels like the criticism she faced actually made Nina Simone well-known.
Here’s an excerpt from the interview:
“There’s no one way to be black,” she says quietly and slowly, clearly choosing her words carefully. “I’m black the way I know how to be. You have no idea who I am. I am black. I’m raising black men. Don’t you ever think you can look at me and address me with such disdain.”
The very idea that Saldana could be considered too pretty to play Simone seems to make the actress more sad than defensive. “I never saw her as unattractive. Nina looks like half my family!” she says. “But if you think the [prosthetic] nose I wore was unattractive, then maybe you need to ask yourself, What do you consider beautiful? Do you consider a thinner nose beautiful, so the wider you get, the more insulted you become?”
What seemed to drive criticism about Saldana daring to take the role—one she turned down for a year, by the way—was not just the idea that she wore skin-darkening makeup to play Simone but the even deeper affront that the job went to someone seen as apolitical. This characterization doesn’t necessarily square with Saldana’s own experiences. “Reading all the postings for castings for the 20 years I’ve been an actress, there’s so often that last line about ‘the director wants to go traditional with this part,'” she says—meaning Caucasian. “But every now and then, I encounter filmmakers like James Cameron, J. J. Abrams, Ben Affleck, James Gunn, and they go, ‘Why not you? You’re “traditional.” You’re everything.'”
Still, she has no regrets. “The script probably would still be lying around, going from office to office, agency to agency, and nobody would have done it. Female stories aren’t relevant enough, especially a black female story,” she says. “I made a choice. Do I continue passing on the script and hope that the ‘right’ black person will do it, or do I say, ‘You know what? Whatever consequences this may bring about, my casting is nothing in comparison to the fact that this story must be told.'”
“The fact that we’re talking about her, that Nina Simone is trending? We f*cking won,” Saldana continues. “For so many years, nobody knew who the f*ck she was. She is essential to our American history. As a woman first, and only then as everything else.”
She has to be the most egoistical c-nt in the business right behind J Law.
She sounds really ignorant.
Delusional. Nina Simone is a legend and we didn’t need Zoe Saldana to do anything. I knew that deep down inside she would pretend not to understand why she got backlash and play obtuse when asked about it.
And she’s so serious too with these responses. Bless her heart.
So she’s just going to pretend she doesn’t know what all of the outrage was about? Cool. I’m not surprised. People like her only care about their blackness when it’s convenient to them. And in this interview she didn’t mind throwing black people under a bus. I’m glad the movie flopped.
She just doesn’t get it or doesn’t want to get it smh.
Ummmmm so this is what she told herself to make herself feel better??? Cuz the Nina Simone camp wasn’t feeling this bish at all……so idk how she feels that’s correct another thing since when she started raising two Black men????
No one had a problem with how the prosthetic nose or blackface looked. The problem is that she had to use it in the first place to play the role when there are so many dark skinned actresses who wouldn’t have needed to do any of that. They made a bad casting choice and that’s why the movie flopped.
Meh, I expected this from her. It’s one of the reasons I didn’t feel the need to feel bad for her when she got dragged. She’s very arrogant and doesn’t care about anyone but herself…basically perfect for Hollywood.
So she’s a “black” actress who has no problem with using blackface and a prosthetic nose. This is why people constantly question her blackness.
She’s raising black men? How Sway? I wish people would let go of the one drop rule.
What a pompous response.
First off, no one was upset about Nina not being “beautiful”! That’s some bullsh-t youre using to justify that crap movie and your horrid performance. B-tch Nina was and still is a goddess! The fact that you think you somehow made her beautiful because you’re a skinny a-s Latina with white features is absurd. FOH! And you didn’take her more well-known hon! The world knew about Nina before you and your prosthetic nose rode in to save the day…..and failed I might add.
She just validated all the people who said she selfishly took this role and doesn’t really care about anyone but herself.
I tried to give this woman some kind of a pass at first because I was hoping it was just a mistake and poor decision on her part and she would learn from the situation. But here is she is being smug as hell and just showing all of her critics were spot on about her. She is very selfish and she has very questionable character to say the things she said in this interview.
She really just needs to stop talking about this.