'Game Of Thrones' Star Nathalie Emmanuel Says No To Playing Princess Tiana In Solidarity With Darker-Skinned Actresses
The internet's search for the perfect leading lady for a live-action The Princess and the Frog remake has been seemingly going on for years. Most recently, fans threw Game of Thrones star Nathalie Emmanuel's name in the hat for consideration — but the actress is politely passing on the “opportunity” for good reason.
The conversation was started when the creative executive of Monkeypaw Productions, Matthew A. Cherry, retweeted a tweet fan casting How to Get Away With Murder's Rome Flynn as Prince Naveen in the re-imagined film.
"This is smart," Cherry wrote in response, before asking, "Now who plays Tiana?"
While the thread saw fans suggest the likes of Aja Naomi King, Ryan Destiny and KiKi Layne to fill the role — all of which many agreed were excellent picks — one user suggested that Emmanuel be included, prompting the actress to chime in, herself, stressing that an actress with a deeper complexion is much more deserving of the role.
"Nah that part has to go to an even more melanated sister," she tweeted, to which Cherry responded, "We stan a self aware queen."
Expounding on her already stan-worthy justification for turning down the fan casting, Emmanuel added one more reason why she would be the wrong choice to don the iconic green ball gown.
Emmanuel's words echo the sentiments of several other Black actresses who have spoken out against colorist casting in Hollywood.
One of the most notable and recent cases involves Zendaya, who, during the 2018 Beautycon Festival in New York City, explained that she wants to use her privilege as a woman of color with a lighter complexion to help other actresses who are overlooked for their richer skin tones.
"As a Black woman, as a light-skinned Black woman, it's important that I'm using my privilege, my platform to show you how much beauty there is in the African-American community," she said. "I am Hollywood's, I guess you could say, acceptable version of a Black girl, and that has to change."