Amandla Stenberg Addresses ‘Blood and Bone’ Colorism Controversy
The actress, who’s been faced with allegations of colorism regarding her casting, called the prejudice “an insidious system.”
By Jaelani Turner-Williams
February 13, 2025 / 9:47 AM
Amandla Stenberg broke her silence after an onslaught of social media comments about her being cast in the upcoming film adaptation of “Children of Blood and Bone.”
In the Gina Prince-Bythewood-directed action fantasy, slated to release on January 15, 2027, Stenberg will reportedly star as Princess Amari, the crown princess of Orïsha, described as a dark-skinned African. However, as Stenberg, who is of African-American and Danish descent, was cast in the film, fans expressed their outrage, and the actress responded in a TikTok posted on Monday, February 14.
“I am four months into training for ‘Children of Blood and Bone’ and I am getting my ass whooped,” Stenberg joked at the beginning of the 9-minute video.
The actress went on to show a willingness to address the misconception that she steals roles from dark-skinned women. Stenberg has spoken about her privilege before regarding her past roles and turning down opportunities in films like “Black Panther.”
“This year was mostly defined for me, honestly, by contending with what it felt like to receive racist death threats just for existing in the ‘Star Wars’ universe, and that was a really difficult thing for me to move through,” she said at one point in the video. “But honestly, it feels so much more painful for me to feel like I’m at odds with my own community.”
“I want everyone to know that this is important to me, and I think about it with every choice that I make. I would never navigate my career blindly, not thinking about my skin tone or the space I occupy,” she continued. “I would never go after a role I didn’t feel was right for me…I want to see all skin tones represented in media. I know that colorism is an insidious system that relentlessly impacts every facet of entertainment.”
“Children of Blood and Bone” co-stars Thuso Mbedu, Damson Idris, Tosin Cole, Viola Davis, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and more. Still, it was upon meeting “Blood and Bone” author Tomi Adeyemi, that she understood how important it was to play Princess Amari.
“I had the opportunity to meet Tomi, the novelist, for the first time … And she goes, ‘Amandla, I want you to know that when you were a little girl and you were cast as Rue in ‘The Hunger Games,’ and people said that Rue’s death wouldn’t be as sad because you’re a Black girl—that inspired me to write this series so that Black girls like you and Black girls of all shades could have a story written about them,’” Stenberg explained. “We started crying, and I said to myself, ‘God wants me here.’”
Adeyemi has also been documenting her reactions to the progression of “Blood and Bone,” which began filming this week.
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