For Millennials. By Millennials.
The recent interview by John Boyega has taken Hollywood by a storm. The Star Wars actor has opened up about the racist abuse he received while working with Disney. Moreover, Boyega also accused Disney of ignoring his Star Wars characters in favor of Adam Driver and Daisy Ridley’s character. Now, ‘The Flash’ star Candice Patton also voiced her support for John Boyega. Furthermore, Patton also claims to have had a “similar experience” to Boyega!
Candice Patton supports Boyega, claims she had a similar experience!
As Boyega’s story broke out on social media, several Black stars came out with their similar experiences of racism. Candice Patton was one of them as well. She has her own stories of how much racist abuse she received from fans as she worked on ‘The Flash’. Upon reading his comments, Candice Patton tweeted in his support, saying she went through a “similar experience”:
Similar experience. Similar feelings. Grateful for this. ❤️ https://t.co/irZi1hkIVo
— Candice Patton (@candicepatton) September 3, 2020
And sure enough, Candice Patton had talked about it a couple of years ago as well. During a panel appearance at POPSUGAR’s Play/Ground festival, she opened up about the racist abuse she got from some comic book nerds. They were mostly angry because Iris West in the comics was a white character. Candice Patton said:
“For me, Iris West was traditionally white in the comic books. So, you know, comic book fans are very opinionated, very vocal. So it was very scary stepping into that role when I started the show.”
It was so bad that her producer advised her not to go online. However, she did mention that over time, they embraced her performance as Iris. And Candice Patton was also hopeful that in the future, people would remember Iris as African-American because of her. Patton said:
“And I remember our executive producer at this time, once I got cast, he was like ‘Don’t go online. Just don’t go on.’ But what’s great is, I think over time, people have embraced me and have embraced this character and I think it’s really important. And I think what’s great is, you know, years to come, people will remember Iris West as being African-American. And that’s a really, really cool thing.”
John Boyega’s comments against Disney and toxic Star Wars fans
Candice Patton and John Boyega are two of many actors who have opened up about the racist abuse they got. After the George Floyd protests and the popularity of the Black Lives Matter movement worldwide, racism and police brutality have become a part of everyday conversations. In his explosive interview with GQ, Boyega said:
“I’m the only cast member who had their own unique experience of that franchise based on their race. Let’s just leave it like that. It makes you angry with a process like that. It makes you much more militant, it changes you… Nobody else had the uproar and death threats sent to their Instagram DMs and social media, saying, ‘Black this and black that and you shouldn’t be a Stormtrooper.’ Nobody else had that experience. But yet people are surprised that I’m this way. That’s my frustration.”
What do you think of John Boyega’s comments and the revelation by Candice Patton? Let us know in the comments below!
