top of page
Writer's pictureShe's SINGLE Magazine
Jul 125 min read

Julia Fox Calls Out Racist Movie Director on Social Media: "Diversity Casting is Like Using Black People as Puppets"

by Venus Sanders

Another day, another racist incident.

In 2019, Julia Fox rose to mainstream fame after fans watched her in the Netflix film, “Uncut Gems,” alongside Adam Sandler. Her great acting, along with her robust derriere, caught the attention of streamers, and eventually, she began making her rounds on many urban blogs.


Since then, she has starred in many other films, but it wasn’t until her relationship with rapper Kanye West, following his very public and humiliating divorce from reality TV star and serial entrepreneur Kim Kardashian, that people really started paying attention.


Fast forward, Julia Fox is a beloved socialite, with many commenting on her down-to-earth persona. After going viral for showing her modest NYC home, fans flocked to the actress. Fox is known for speaking her truth and telling it as it is, sharing some cute one-liners from interviews with Drew Barrymore and Variety Magazine.


Well, today is no different as Fox shared some personal details from a recent conversation with a white director—whom she did not name—regarding the direction of a film she will be starring in. Fox took to TikTok this morning asking fans to help her determine whether or not she’s being gaslighted after sharing that she recently ended a call with a director who is now attached to a film she’s been working on for the past five years.


Fox made it known that she’s also responsible for bringing on an A-list actor to accompany her in this film, “I’ve even brought on a major, major A-list icon to play alongside me,” she said. “And everything was going great until this white male director came in.” Julia said this director, due to her pushback on his comments, is now requesting her to be removed from the project.


She is requesting diversity in the lead cast. She went on to share his remarks, “Why? White people have it really hard, too. And plus, diversity casting is like using Black people as puppets.” Fox took a moment to share with her viewers, “Meanwhile, we’re all puppets, what are you talking about?”


“White people don’t have a duty to cast Black people because so many Black projects happen, and Asian projects, and nobody gets mad that there are no white people in the cast,” she continues, quoting the director, who allegedly said these things. “Turn on Netflix, turn on any streamer, it’s all Black projects. Go to India; all the movies in India have all Indian people, and nobody gets mad that they don’t have diversity.” The full video is on our YouTube page.


She does go on to say that it was giving ‘All Lives Matter’ and ‘White Supremacy.’ There’s no doubt that if you’re a cinephile like myself, then you’ve noticed that there is little range in casting for the most part—especially in horror films where the Black cast member is usually the first to go. We can attribute that to the difficulties of maintaining the hair of an African American cast member versus biracial or non-Black cast members.


Many horror films use fake blood, which generally consists of corn syrup or plain syrup, and if it’s cheap, it can attract a lot of flies and gnats. Given the cost and time, it may be easier for a non-Black actor to wash their hair and return to set. It usually just boils down to the budget. We can also think back to ‘The Little Mermaid,’ where it was reported that the cost alone for Halle Bailey’s hair was around $150,000 for that film.


We are not saying that Black actors and actresses should be excluded from films due to their hair and its upkeep. What we are saying is that fans need to be nicer to Black actors and actresses when commenting on their looks and making them feel so self-conscious that they have to limit themselves to “pretty roles.” When we think of certain films or projects, we don’t want to watch them because they have a cast full of Black people or White people; we watch them because they have a great story.


However, as much as we like to blame Hollywood alone, fans must take some accountability in this issue as well. For example, when the movie trailer for ‘The Color Purple’ was announced, fans were in the comments being rude and degrading towards the women in the film, also citing things like, “Nobody asked for this.” Then, when the film hit theaters, it bombed. However, I watched as the trailer for the film ‘Mother’s Instincts’ was released that same week, and the comments were the complete opposite in support of Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain, with the majority saying things like, “Sat,” “Seated,” and “Can’t wait to see this!”


We already know Fox is always going to stand up for what’s right, and we completely agree with her, but we can’t overlook the bigger picture here—African American viewers have to show better support for Black actors and actresses in all types of movies, whether it’s horror, action, or musicals. Sure, there are many urban films on streaming platforms, but what is the context? Most are ghetto—and yes, Tubi, I’m looking at you.


Amazon and Netflix have Black films, but if we take a look at their ratings on websites such as IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, it’s not always good. Tyler Perry has been working with streaming platforms recently, having released "Mea Culpa" on Netflix and "Divorce in the New Black" on Prime. Both films have received heavy critiques from audiences and will not translate well across multiple demographics. So while Fox is right, and we believe she’s genuine in her advocacy, it’s important that we also look inward and...

  • Stop supporting Black movies that depict African Americans as ghetto, stupid, and slaves.

  • Start showing support for Black actors and actresses, and embrace their natural beauty as we do with anyone else.

  • Stop supporting films that do not show diversity.

  • Stop supporting films where there’s a non-Black character cosplaying African American culture – Awkwafina, I’m looking at you.

  • Put your money where your mouth is—support more African American authors who write quality stories so we can see more of those books become feature films, starring the actors and actresses we love.


bottom of page