John Boyega Doesn’t Agree w/ Idris Elba’s Stance On Not Wanting To Be Referred To As A ‘Black Actor’: We Continuously Focus On What We Have To Do So They Don’t Do This Or That, Very Worrying

Idris Elba, John Boyega

John Boyega Doesn’t Agree w/ Idris Elba’s Stance On Not Wanting To Be Referred To As A ‘Black Actor’: We Continuously Focus On What We Have To Do So They Don’t Do This Or That, Very Worrying

John Boyega is letting the world know that he is Black and proud!

On Friday (Feb. 10) British actor John Boyega responded to a fan who agreed with Idris Elba’s decision to refrain from referring to himself as a “Black actor” in hopes to avoid being typecast into stereotypical roles because of his race.

John Boyega disagreed, claiming that Black actors shouldn’t make adjustments for the industry and instead, the industry should change for the better. The 30-year-old actor said:

“I think we should fixate on who is typecasting and putting actors in boxes because of this. Not on making weird adjustments for them. We continuously focus on what we have to do so they don’t do this or that. Very worrying. We BLACK and that’s that.”

This story comes as Idris Elba is preparing to return as Detective John Luther in Netflix’s “Luther: The Fallen Son,” which is set to debut on March 10. As previously reported, the British actor shared that he will no longer describe himself as a “Black actor,” a step made in an effort to avoid attaching any restrictive labels to his career. He explained:

“Of course, I’m a member of the Black community. You say a prominent one. But when I go to America, I’m a prominent member of the British community. ‘Oh, U.K.’s in the house!’ If we spent half the time not talking about the differences but the similarities between us, the entire planet would have a shift in the way we deal with each other.”

Highlighting Black people’s alleged obsession with race, the 50-year-old continued:

“Racism should be a topic for discussion, sure. Racism is very real. But from my perspective, it’s only as powerful as you allow it to be. I stopped describing myself as a Black actor when I realized it put me in a box. We’ve got to grow. We’ve got to. Our skin is no more than that: it’s just skin. Rant over.”

He added:

“As you get up the ladder, you get asked what it’s like to be the first Black to do this or that. Well, it’s the same as it would be if I were white. It’s the first time for me. I don’t want to be the first Black. I’m the first Idris.”

The Netflix movie is an extension of the five-season BBC drama that seemingly launched Elba‘s career into international stardom between 2010 and 2019. For the series, Elba received four Emmy nominations in addition to two Golden Globe wins, a Screen Actors Guild award, and a Critics’ Choice award.

Do you agree with John Boyega or Idris Elba? Tell us below.