and Denzel Washington pierced the glass ceiling

In 1993, Jonathan Demme’s film, released on May 15, marked a turning point in the history of the recognition of African-American actors in Hollywood. One of its main performers, Denzel Washington, was carrying out a revolution which, while silent, was nonetheless crucial.

The case played out behind the scenes. Early 1993. Alan J. Pakula is preparing to adapt John Grisham’s bestseller on the big screen The Pelican Affair. As a law student whose life is in danger, Julia Roberts will prove that she is not just a modern reincarnation of Audrey Hepburn in Pretty Woman. For the one who, at his side, must play a white investigative journalist, the casting is not complete. An actor, however, is in the running. He’s black but has the support of Roberts, who steps in to convince Pakula. “I hadn’t thought of Denzel, had to recognize the filmmaker. But what I was looking for above all was the seriousness and the weight that a man could bring to convince the character of Julia to trust him.e. »

Discreet successor to Sidney Poitier

Trust Denzel Washington? It took a dozen years for the film industry to dub this hardworking and discreet artist as Sidney Poitier’s successor. The latter was the first African-American to establish himself as a star in the film industry. Cherished and criticized, at the same time, for its ability to have seduced the white public by offering an image of reliability and dignity, Poitier will not have had the opportunity to dig into the asperities of a personality that we guessed more complex than in appearance. Ironic, lucid about the limits imposed by Hollywood productions of the 1950s and 1960s, the actor will never go further than In the heat of the Night (1967), by an inspector slapping a white man and overturning a racist policeman. Having hardly compromised with his principles but desperately alone, Sidney Poitier will have shown himself to be heroic.

Build empathy

After him, Richard Pryor, in the 1970s, then Eddie Murphy, the following decade, offer black Americans a cooler image, but whose comic character, even funny, does not escape certain stereotypes. As for Morgan Freeman, the respect attached to his person never permanently removes the question of origins, as evidenced in 1989 by his emblematic role in Miss Daisy and her driver. Coming from the scene, methodically plowing TV series and message films, Denzel Washington stands out for his ability to arouse empathy in often harsh roles, from soldier to Glory in the title role, in 1992, of Malcolm X. While this divisive biopic of Spike Lee doesn’t draw crowds, it showcases Washington’s inhabited lineup, which is rife with criticism.

Nominated for the Oscars, the 38-year-old actor sweeps away the last reluctance of producers and filmmakers who, in quick succession, will give him three roles for white actors. Kenneth Branagh thus engages him in Don Pedro of Aragon in his adaptation of A lot of noise for nothing, by Shakespeare. This choice makes people cringe, including those of critic John Simon, National Review, who questions: “What does Denzel Washington, as a black prince of Aragon, do in a convincing period film?” »Pakula, him, does not wonder about his skin but on his persuasive force to make him the reporter of The Pelican Affair. By the way, he still removes the love scenes between the character of Denzel and that of Julia Roberts. History not to go too far? The filmmaker will deny any self-censorship on this subject …

“This role was not written for an African American, but I had always wanted to work with Denzel” – Jonathan Demme

The racial question nevertheless resurfaces, as a prerequisite to be evacuated, when Jonathan Demme questions Washington, who dreams of playing under his direction defending lawyer Tom Hanks in Philadelphia. “This role was not written for an African-American, will tell Demme, but I had always wanted to work with Denzel. Having him on the phone, I said, “You read the script. Do you think we should make changes regarding the character of lawyer Joe Miller who, a priori, is intended for a European? ” Denzel replies: “No, I don’t think so. And you ? – No, me neither. ” “ Enthusiastic, Demme hires Washington and makes the actor the costar of Hanks. When leaving Philadelphia, at the end of 1993, no one questions the fact that an African-American interprets a bourgeois not devoid of homophobic prejudices. In his wake, Will Smith plays, the same year, an opportunist, devilishly seductive, bisexual, who claims to be the son of Sidney Poitier and upsets the intimacy of a large bourgeois New York family in Six Degrees of Separation. For African-American actors, after 1993, nothing will be the same.

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