27 November 2015
Newsdesk
Jennifer Hudson wishes that Hollywood would stop judging actors on their race and instead concentrate on their talent.
The 34-year-old star first shot to fame on U.S. television talent show American Idol back in 2004 before her acting skills saw her land a role in 2006 movie Dreamgirls - a role for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Since then Jennifer has become one of the most well respected actors in Hollywood with films including The Secret Life of Bees and Mandela under her belt.
A recent cover of The Hollywood Reporter showcasing the leading female award contenders for 2016 caused controversy due to its lack of diversity.
And Jennifer admitted that while she is sad to say, she feels the cover controversy is entirely representative of the way Hollywood looks at black actresses in general.
“It’s unfortunate but that’s the nature of things,” Jennifer told The Grio.
Jennifer is currently starring in Broadway show The Color Purple, based on Alice Walker's book of the same name. She added that productions like her own, as well as the work of famous faces such as Empire's Taraji P. Henson and How To Get Away With Murder's Viola Davis are seeing progress being made but there is still a long way to go.
“That’s why I love to see stories like The Color Purple with major black characters," Jennifer added. "Looking at people like Taraji and Viola… making it more known and creating that platform for us to be seen in that way… it’s some strong women out there… actors that are just so powerful and inspiring me and other actresses and opening up the doors for us to be able to do more and to be seen in that way.
“I believe it was Viola that said, it’s about the opportunity. We can do it too, but give us that opportunity. Taking advantage of those opportunities when they’re presented to us makes more room for us in that way, and hopefully it’s the talent that’s seen and not the colour."
