Star of the original 'Super Mario Bros' John Leguizamo doesn't think
Hollywood has become very inclusive
The 1993 Super Mario Bros
actor John Leguizamo John Leguizamo does not think Hollywood has changed
much. The Latino actor believes his community is still not well represented
in the industry.
Speaking to Indiewire, the actor said:
“It’s
changed a little bit, not enough. I mean, come on: Last year it was maybe
two percent of the leads. This year it’s three percent. That’s still not OK.
We’re 20 percent of the population, so we should be 20 percent of the
leads.”
The original Super Mario Bros actor said the word diversity
gets thrown around a lot in Hollywood, but his community is still
‘excluded’.
“It’s a great buzzword, but to what effect? I’m glad
that everybody else is getting great representation, but we’re still
excluded. I don’t like to compare, but either we’re not complaining enough
or not being loud enough to demand what we deserve. Some of us may not even
know we’re excluded. Executives are not going to do anything unless somebody
calls them on it.”
Moreover, the actor said his ideas for pieces
keep getting rejected for various reasons but he knows that it’s just
racism.
“I pitch a lot of historic pieces that are incredible. I got
all this historical information from the 1700s, or the 1800s, and I’m told,
“Oh, we’re not doing period stuff,” “We’re not doing feel-good movies.” It’s
Hollywood racism masked as Hollywood wisdom.”
John Leguizamo
became well-known for his role as Luigi in the 1993 film Super Mario Bros.
He also gained attention for his performance as Benny Blanco in the crime
drama Carlito's Way (1993). Later on, he starred in the movie To Wong Foo,
Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995), which earned him a nomination
for Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Globe Awards.
