COLOURISM LIMITS ITS CULTURAL IMPACT
A DECADE AGO, In The Heights was a different proposition. Even back then, Lin-manuel Miranda — who launched his career with the stage production in 2008 — had been wanting to turn his debut into a movie. Instead he was met with the usual Hollywood excuses as to why a Latinx-focused movie wouldn’t travel, and advised to hire already-famous singers — “Latino stars who test international,” as he later told Variety. Fast forward to 2021, and the Jon M. Chu-directed blockbuster is filled to the brim with fresh Latinx talent, all of whom are celebrating a culture that has so often been vilified on screen.
But while this is one of the film’s major positives, the question of why none of the leading roles are played by dark-skinned Latinx actors grew. When it was posed to the cast and director in an interview by Felice León, an Afro-cuban video producer for The Root, their clichéd responses (“We tried to get people who were best for those roles”) left much to be desired.
That darker-skinned actors have been denied opportunities given to their lighter, whiter counterparts is nothing new in Hollywood. Indeed, it’s why Puerto Rican actor Rita Moreno could only play the supporting role of Anita in 1961’s West Side Story while her white co-star, Natalie Wood, played the leading role of Maria. But in a film that’s made by Latinos for Latinos, it’s disappointing that not everyone from the diaspora being depicted in In The Heights is represented.
Add this to the fact that the filmmakers made the decision to not adapt the plot of a significant character being anti-black from play to screen, and it’s clear that the movie wasted a golden opportunity to make a statement about race and colourism in Latinx communities.
It’s unfortunate that this conversation has cast a bum note on a film which has the potential to influence the future of Latinx projects for years to come. But while In the Heights is a shift in the right direction, there’s still much more work to be done to ensure that the entire diaspora is represented in a positive way. If Miranda’s recent statement is anything to go by, he’ll be leading the charge: “I’m learning from the feedback, I thank you for raising it, and I’m listening.” And we’ll be watching.