Nina Simone controversy = Political correctness has jumped the shark

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Charlize Theron in Monster. Almost every real life person DiCaprio has played. The list goes on and on.

Well said. This "political correctness" has really gotten out of control. I just read that for her role in The Danish Girl, Alicia Vikander wore make up to make her appear whiter, as the character she plays was from Scandinavia. You didn't hear a word about that on Twitter did you? But they make a black actress appear blacker and people lose their minds.

There are real problems in the world people!! This is not one of them.

I think people are mad for reasons other than zoe not being "black" enough... actually the fact that she had to wear dark makeup and a fake nose is proof enough that her features are nothing like simone's but that's besides the point... there are so many other actresses that could have been a better choice to play simone..but zoe was picked because of politics, all Hollywood cares about is $$$$, saldana has proven herself capable of being a box office star, and that's what they want

First off, this film is NOT a Hollywood production. The film is being made by Ealing Studios and Londinum Films, both are London based production companies.

So "Hollywood" isn't involved in this.

Second, Nicole Kidman wore a fake nose in THE HOURS to play Virginia Woolf. She also wore heavy makeup to hide her natural freckles since Virgina did not have freckles. She won an academy award. Anthony Hopkins wore a fake nose and chin and hair piece to play NIXON, he also wore a fat suit, fake nose and bald cap to play HITCHCOCK. Daniel Day Lewis wore a fake nose and chin to play LINCOLN an won an academy award.

Wearing prosthetics and having additional MU is common in filmmaking. Very rarely to actors look like the person they're playing. To say Zoe shouldn't play Nina b/c she needs a fake nose & MU is ignorant.

While it's entirely possible Zoe got the part because of resume, that's how most actors get their roles. I'm sure this London company making the film needed a "star" to play Simone to get financing. That's extremely common. Film companies aren't running a charity. Films are made to make money.

But you're assuming that's the ONLY reason. Zoe's incredibly talented. The events of this film appear to cover Nina's rise to fame when she was in her early 30's. Zoe was 36 when making this film. She plays younger. Seems to fit perfectly age wise. And she's talented.

But that's not enough. You want to find someone who is all those things AND dark skinned with EXACT physical features to Nina?

My goodness.

Political correctness may seem pathetic and even counter productive at a glance, but if you cant identify it as a symptom of a real problem, and see that it is clearly a "work in progress" - a bump in the road to societal evolution - then you are just not competent enough to speak about this.

Of course Hollywood is "white-washed". And of course it is partly due to consumer demand - DUH - we live in a society that has been fighting for years to get rid of the systemic racism that is - of course - still present today.

This is just like with prohibition; we banned drugs because Nancy strangled her kids while high on weed, and consequently ruined it for the rest of us. As in the case with Nancy, you are completely allowed to cry about your culture being ruined by bad actors who are only being cast as a societal measure. But since this sht has an actual impact on society we dont care about your experience in the theater. This needs to be regulated by people who have the merits needed to actually understand the problem and impact society. Which is good, because it will free up more of your time to handle things that you excel at, what ever that is...

With all due respect, this isn't evolution. This is devolution.

The outcry against Zoe is unjust. It's being made by a community that seems to have appointed themselves the judge, jury & executioner of what constitutes "Black".

Zoe's being criticized, judged, not for her talent but by what she looks like and the color of her skin. Isn't that racism?

So Malcolm X wasn't black because he's not as "dark skinned" as Martin Luther King? PR & DR Black people aren't real Black because they're not African American? South American Blacks aren't real blacks?

Do you think a bigot wearing a KKK sheet cares what shade of Black you are before they discriminate?

I'll guarantee you Zoe's had to endure all the same struggles any Black girl of her has had to endure. I'm sure she's lost out on roles that went to other actresses.

I also love how folks continue to bash "hollywood". This isn't a Hollywood film. It's being made by a British Company. No Hollywood studios are involved.

I believe there is a difference between being politically correct, in terms of referring to the "disabled" instead of the previous nomenclatures used to describe them.

I have no idea what your point about Prohibition is, but you and others are judging Zoe and the filmmakers before anyone's seen the film. Do you know for a fact the filmmakers don't have the merits to tell this story? Has anyone thought for a second that Zoe was the best ACTRESS for the role? That she was the right age an gave the best audition? Do folks understand that filmmaking is a business and films are social experiments?

It's hard to make a movie. Really hard. Even harder to make a low budget Bio Pic. I'll guarantee you no one on the production is making a ton of money. I'll guarantee you Zoe is making a fraction of what she normally would.

Why? Because she wanted to play the role. Because she had a passion to tell Nina's story. These filmmakers probably spent years of their lives making this film.

People need to stop protesting stuff and start living life. There are real issues to protest. There are real injustices in the world. This isn't one of them. The degree of Zoe's skin tone is NOT a real issue.

First off...Zoe is not a great actress. Uzo Aduba is...who is an emmy-award winner and actually looks closer to Nina Simone.


Second, Zoe is part of the racial hollywood cycle of giving us the go-to "black" actress. First off it was Halle Berry now it's Zoe. So it does rub people the wrong way when she is put in all the "black" roles, when she does not look like or represent quintissential blackness.

Third of all...this is an important story about race and identity and the hardship Nina Simone went through based on her image. Zoe does not get that and will never get that. So you have to pick someone who can identify with that.

Lastly...Steve Carrell having prosthetics to look closer to a fellow white man is very different from Zoe darkening her skin which brings up the horrors and history of blackface to play a role.

People, whites mainly, are missing the racial aspect of it because they just don't understand.