The success of shows such as Thandie Newton’s Rogue and Kerry Washington’s Scandal has seen a dramatic rise in the number of US television dramas starring black lead actresses. But while Newton, pictured, is thrilled to be part of the change, it frustrates her that race is still a casting issue.
“It riles me that it’s still a thing,” Newton said at the Hospital Club last night, where she was receiving a Voice of a Woman award, for peace and human rights activism. “But it’s also a fact Kerry and I are the only two right now.
“Generally speaking, the people who decide what goes on air tend to live in a bubble. And that’s perhaps the reason why TV is very slow at representing how people live in the real world.
“But it’s changing. When I was younger it sometimes felt like it was just me, Halle Berry and Naomi Campbell.”
