The Stigma of Tokenism: Relic or Repeat Offender?
I was asked by a friend the other day what my thoughts were on the concept of “The Token Black Guy” in movies in this day and age. Instead of the flippant answer I usually give to such questions, I stopped and thought about this one for a second.
Do they still do that in movies?
The answer is pretty obviously yes. Take the film “Skyline” for example. That cat from the show “Scrubs” plays an almost stereotypical young black male with a white girlfriend and a white fling on the side. And to top it off, he’s the first main character in the film to die.
Gonna have to call that a repeat offender for “Token Black Guy”
Flip that coin though and you have Morgan Freeman in “Wanted”, arguably the best character in the whole film and the only reason you would watch it in the first place. And his role as God in “Bruce Almighty” and “Evan Almighty”. Or even his role in Kevin Costner’s take on the Robin Hood tale, where he again manages to play one of the best characters in the whole film.
So…he’d give “Token Black Guy” a relic status.
That takes talent.