Miranda Wayland Doesn’t Think ‘Luther’ Is Authentic
The BBC’s diversity chief Miranda Wayland says Luther starring Idris Elba “doesn’t feel authentic.” Twitter users have since come forward with their own opinions on the matter. BBC has also addressed Wayland’s remarked in a statement.
‘When it first came out everybody loved the fact that Idris Elba was in there — a really strong, Black character lead,” Wayland said. “We all fell in love with him. Who didn’t, right? But after you got into about the second series, you got kind of like, OK, he doesn’t have any Black friends, he doesn’t eat any Caribbean food, this doesn’t feel authentic. It’s about making sure that everything around them — their environment, their culture, the set — is absolutely reflective.”
Yesterday, it was implied I’m not black enough because I didn’t have any black friends in my photo.
— Calvin Robinson (@calvinrobinson) April 14, 2021
Today, BBC’s diversity chief says @idriselba’s Luther “isn’t black enough” because “he doesn’t have any black friends”.
These lazy stereotypes are racist!https://t.co/sIDc7c0pnL https://t.co/bpQhEIKOfA
Many Black people on Twitter have taken offense to these comments. They feel like these stereotypes are harmful to the integrity of the show and “Blackness” can’t fully be shown through the people one surrounds themselves with or their taste in food.
“Luther isn’t black enough to be real because he doesn’t have any black friends and doesn’t eat any Caribbean food”
— Chris Rose (@ArchRose90) April 14, 2021
When you see groups through the prism of stereotypes this is the insulting outcome. Would she prefer to see Luther dunk basketball hoops at the end of every scene? https://t.co/s6esjoCMbQ
A BBC spokesperson has since addressed these comments by saying “Luther is a multi-award winning crime drama series and the iconic role of DCI John Luther has become one of TV’s most powerful detective characters of which we are tremendously proud. The BBC is committed to its continued investment in diversity and recent BBC One dramas I May Destroy You and Small Axe are testament to that.”
I just read the BBC’s head of diversity Miranda Wayland says Idris Elba’s TV character Luther isn’t black enough to be real because he doesn’t have black friends or eat Caribbean food. Just because Luther likes pie ‘n’ mash instead of jerk chicken doesn’t make him any less black!
— BermondseyBoy5.0 (@LovelyGeezer65) April 14, 2021
No singular person can define “Blackness” because it’s an accumulation of culture, heritage, and history that manifests differently in every Black individual. You can read Miranda Wayland’s full statement here and BBC’s here.
Writer | Tweet me @sapnaamin7
