Racism in the United States is very real and everyday there is a new video floating on social media about a “Ken” or “Karen” viciously attacking or patronizing a Black person. In fact, some celebrities are using their platforms to continue to push the conversation and change for Black people. As a result, some producers and directors are starting to create more roles and films for the Black community. Wilson said the entertainment industry is long overdue for this change.
“I feel that it is a long time coming and I think that it feels appropriate to balance the table, especially in terms of opportunities for Black actors to be seen in roles that they were not normally seen as or even considered for,” Wilson said.
“It feels really good to have that voice and to be able to be considered for those roles. With that being said, we’re still just in the beginning of this conversation and this new tone with the film and television industry, so we will see what happens in the next year or so,” he said.
Wilson said he is looking forward to working with more Black actors and he would love to specifically work with Viola Davis one day.
“She’s a queen and she has so much integrity and she has so much passion for what she does,” he said excitedly.
Some would agree that Snowpiercer has many similarities with the pandemic. For example, it deals with the apocalypse which is what much of the United States looked like in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There are similarities to what is happening right now. I had a real sense of being in an apocalyptic time like never before the week of March 17th going to the grocery store and feeling anxiety and fear,” Wilson continued, “In Snowpiercer you have those emotions of fear and anxiety where there is the unknown, how is this going to end, this is not a normal time.”
Wilson also said that class plays a major role in the COVID-19 pandemic as well as in the show.
“Those that are poor don’t have anything and don’t have access to anything. In the pandemic, you see that in plan day, right in broad daylight. Those that are well off or wealthy do have access to healthcare…but those that go check to check and really need their jobs and don’t have a safety net are met with real harsh consequences.”
When Wilson isn’t on the big screen, he is being a father to his three children. He said he enjoys being a father and admires his daughter because at 9-years-old she made a decision he doesn’t feel he would have had the courage to do, which is to transition.
“I’ve said it many many many times and I mean it every time that I say it because she is literally my hero. There is nothing she has done that I could’ve done at the age of nine,” he said happily.
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