Pedro Almodóvar criticizes hypocrisy in Hollywood and says that heterosexual actors can play LGBTQ+ characters – The USA Print

The topic of diversity in the world of cinema continues to be one of the most discussed debates by the public. For some it is the natural middle step to pave the way for new creators and new stories; but for others it is a big defect that supposedly lowers the quality of the movies. In the end, the middle point of the conversation is how real the support the industry claims to offer these artists is. For a director like Pedro Almodóvar, all of this isn’t really a problem as some want to believe, and if Hollywood really wants to help fix the issue it simply needs to give more opportunities to diverse writers.

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Hollywood and its fight for diversity

Although the film industry allows us to talk about all kinds of things, history has taught us that certain prejudices have been fed by these creations and in many cases have limited the arrival of more diverse creators. When you wanted to address a feminist issue or the LGBTQ+ community, it was not unusual for a white, heterosexual director to be in charge of the script and direction, which did not seem strange at all. The thing is that this promoted certain clichés in front of and behind the cameras, such as that cis actors who took on the role of a trans character were very brave and dedicated, or that gay love stories are always tragic.

Movies like Philadelphia – 78%, Transamerica – 76% or Brokeback Mountain – 87% were praised by critics and the public, but now they are seen from another perspective that does not leave aside their quality, but rather their intention within the entire panorama of diversity. In recent years, and after all the events related to the MeToo movement, Hollywood has taken a more open stance with the idea of ​​raising the flag for diversity.

This decision has provoked many responses from the public, and although some applaud the fact that thanks to these changes there are films that are more faithful to the LGBTQ+ experience, there are also instances in which it is clear that some production companies take this as an opportunity. to earn several billion at the box office without a real interest in supporting diversity in other scenarios that do not benefit them. The issue will continue to generate waves, with some questioning the Academy’s new rules to secure nominations and others recognizing the gaps that are overcome year after year in these spaces.

read: Venice 2023: Mads Mikkelsen is questioned about the lack of diversity in his new film

Pedro Almodóvar recognizes the hypocrisy of Hollywood

Pedro Almodovar was presented at the Toronto International Film Festival to promote his new project called Extraña Forma de Vida – 100%, a short film starring Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal that has been very well received by critics, and took advantage of an interview with The Hollywood Reporter to talk about the issue of diversity in Hollywood. When asked about whether or not straight actors should play LGBTQ+ characters, the creator commented:

The essence of acting is, in fact, pretending, being someone other than who you are, even in your own essence. That is the essence of acting. Thus, for example, an absolutely heterosexual actor can play a homosexual character and vice versa. If Hollywood is as obsessed, as it is now, with representing minorities, whether Latinos, Asians, or people with disabilities, they should hire them to write.

The director explained:

Just so I’m not misunderstood, I want to make it clear that I am very much in favor of minorities of all kinds being taken into account when casting films and also being hired behind the scenes so they can tell their own stories. . I mean, even when talking about Westerns, we don’t have many Westerns told from the point of view of Native Americans, even though this is a genre that talks about them, often in very cruel and unfair ways.

For Almodóvar, the entire process should be organic and has nothing to do with impositions, but rather with giving fair opportunities to old and new undiscovered talents.

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