Billy Dee Williams has nothing against actors who placed on blackface for a job.
The 87-year-old “Star Wars” actor shared his approach to the controversial topic in an interview with: Bill Maher, 68, in an episode of his podcast “Club Random.”.
Williams alluded to this concept when he recalled that legendary film star Laurence Olivier covered his face with dark makeup for the 1965 film adaptation of “Othello.”
The A play by William Shakespeare centers around A Moor — an individual of Muslim origin who lived in parts of Europe through the Middle Ages — a military lieutenant who fought against the Ottoman Turks.
“When he played ‘Othello,’ I cried with laughter,” Williams said.
“He stuck his ass out and walked around because Black people should have big butts,” he continued.
Maher then chimed in: “And Bradley Cooper thinks he has a nose problem.”
The “A Star Is Born” director, 49, faced criticism last yr when he wore a synthetic nose to play the role of composer Leonard Bernstein in his biopic “The Maestro.”
The costume caused outrage among the many Jewish community, which viewed the nose as a stereotypical feature of itself.
Williams continued: “I thought it was hysterical. I love this kind of stuff.”
“They would never let you do that today,” Maher added about using blackface.
“If you’re an actor, you should do whatever you want,” said the “Mahogany” star. “You should do it.”
Maher then noted that Williams once “actually lived in a time where you couldn’t do this. Where you could not play your part.
“But it didn’t matter,” the “Batman” actor replied. “The fact is… you do not undergo life feeling, ‘I’m a victim.’ I don’t need to undergo life and tell the world, ‘I’m pissed off.’ I’m not going to be pissed off 24/7.
Elsewhere within the chat, Williams and the “Real Time With Bill Maher” host debated whether today’s youth are too soft.
Maher called young adults “fragile” like “hothouse plants” because they were “badly raised.”
Williams rejected this concept, saying they were simply “misled” on contemporary issues. He argued that today’s children lack a “sense of history.”
A political commentator agreed, stating that young adults “[don’t] they don’t know anything, but it’s not their fault” because they could have had a special upbringing.
Credit : nypost.com