Boseman’s new movie is based on real history, unlike Tom Cruise’s ridiculous Last Samurai.
Chadwick Boseman is destined to play every black historical figure Hollywood can think of before his career wraps up.
That’s not meant to be a snarky comment, just an accurate assessment of how he’s played Thurgood Marshall, Jackie Robinson and Black Panther (fictional historic figures matter).
As of late, Black Hollywood and Black Twitter have been very cognizant of the phenomenon that has placed white people in supposedly historically accurate films, then alter the facts to make the white folk look like the hero. This is whitewashing at its highest form.
There are many examples of this. “Hidden Figures”, for example, made up an imaginary white person played by Kevin Costner, then centered him as the reason Dr. Katherine Johnson, played by Taraji P. Henson, had space to succeed in a racist environment.
America ate it up. It made $237 million at the box office and everybody swallowed historical inaccuracy like Gatorade at a Pro-Am tournament in July.
You’d think that a black woman who was handpicked by Neil Armstrong would be a powerful enough story on its own, but producers apparently didn’t think so.
So, now that there are more and more stories about people of African descent that are actually accurate, like Ava DuVernay’s “Selma”, there are bound to be some “mainstream” folks who think it’s made up, embellished or pandering.
So, here’s the actual facts on the project:
The legendary Yasuke was the first samurai of African descent in the history of feudal Japan. He served under the warlord Oda Nobunaga in the 1580’s.
It’s said to be a period drama based on the historic events surrounding his life.
“The legend of Yasuke is one of history’s best kept secrets, the only person of non-Asian origin to become a samurai. That’s not just an action movie, that’s a cultural event, an exchange, and I am excited to be part of it,” Boseman said in a statement.
