We've seen actors excel in some impressive roles, but what you don't always hear about is the projects they've turned down. Whether you're dealing with racism, ageism, sexism, ableism, or problematic views on the LGBTQ+ community, these issues are still alive and well in Hollywood and the scripts actors are given.
Here's a list of celebs who are fighting against stereotypes in Hollywood by the movies and series they choose:
1. Peter Dinklage
Peter Dinklage, who's widely known for portraying Tyrion Lannister in HBO's hit series Game of Thrones , has been open about his views toward Hollywood and its exploitation of people with dwarfism in stereotypical roles. In fact, the actor struggled to find work early on in his career because he refused to accept roles that mocked him or strictly focused on his height.
He shared similar sentiments about the upcoming live-action version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (named Snow White ) and little people being employed as dwarves. During an interview on Mark Maron's WTF podcast , Peter had this to say:
“Literally no offense to anything, but I was sort of taken aback,” he said. “They were very proud to cast a Latino actress as Snow White, but you’re still telling the story of ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.’ Take a step back and look at what you’re doing there. It makes no sense to me. You’re progressive in one way, but you’re still making that fucking backward story about seven dwarfs living in a cave together. Have I done nothing to advance the cause from my soapbox? I guess I’m not loud enough.”
Alberto Rodriguez / The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images 2. David Oyelowo
David Oyelowo, who's widely praised for his portrayal of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in the 2014 film Selma , revealed he turns down the majority of the roles he's offered due to the regurgitated storylines and images surrounding Black men. For this reason, David is extremely selective when it comes to the projects he chooses.
“I live my life from the perspective of ‘I must be part of the solution and not the problem,’” David told Access Hollywood . “I think one of the privileges I don’t have is to just do any role I want because I know that playing certain roles perpetuates stereotypes and perpetuates mindsets people have about black people that is not helpful to all of what we’re talking about.”
“I turn down about 80 percent of what comes my way for that reason because I understand the power storytelling and images have on culture.”
Dave Benett / Jed Cullen/Dave Benett / Getty Images 3. John Cho
John Cho, who you probably recognize from the Harold & Kumar franchise, Searching , and The Afterparty , refuses to take on roles requiring a disingenuous accent. According to a 2016 GQ article about John beating racial stereotypes for Asian actors, when he was featured in the 2002 hit movie Big Fat Liar alongside Amanda Bynes, Frankie Muniz, and Paul Giamatti, he was initially asked to do an accent.
John, who is South Korean, turned down the role because he didn't want viewers to believe it was acceptable to laugh at someone with an accent. The director eventually agreed. Looking back through his resume, you'll find John has yet to take on a role where he'd have to fake an accent.
Jon Kopaloff / Getty Images 4. Priyanka Chopra
Despite being one of India's highest-paid actors, when Priyanka Chopra set out to make a name for herself in Hollywood, she knew what she would tolerate and what she wouldn't. The Love Again star has spoken out publicly about her unwillingness to become an Indian cliche.
For the June 2017 cover shoot of Glamour magazine , Priyanka said this: "I did not want to be the stereotype of either Bollywood or what Indian actors are [usually offered]. The exotic, beautiful girl, or the academically inclined nerd. And I wanted to play a lead… And I’m playing an FBI agent on Quantico . I didn’t settle for less.
When somebody else calls you exotic, exotic is a box—it’s the stereotype of snake charmers and face jewelry. You’re just that stereotype. But I don’t get offended anymore. I used to get offended by things that were said to me, or how I was seen. Now I educate. If I get pissed off, I’ll educate in a sassy way. Other times, I educate in a Gandhi-like way. You know—I have my moods. [Laughs .]"
Joe Maher / Getty Images 5. Brian Michael Smith
Brian Michael Smith, a trans male and actor who you've probably seen in projects like 9-1-1:Lonestar , Queen Sugar , and The L Word: Generation Q , has continuously advocated for trans people throughout his career.
“As trans people, we don’t often get to play roles that are rooted in that part of ourselves,” Brian about the roles afforded to trans actors, according to the Guardian . “I’m not finding the kind of trans stories I want to embody.”
He also spoke out about the treatment of trans women, particularly Black trans women, and how the media's portrayal of them feeds into that: "I want to provide the counterbalance to the negativity that's out here because it impacts real lives," Brian told BuzzFeed earlier this year. "Black trans women are murdered because of these mischaracterizations of the trans experience and what femininity can be. Laws to prevent trans people's rights are being written based on mischaracterizations. Counterbalancing the negativity is my mission, artistry, and life's work."
Leon Bennett / Getty Images 6. Rita Moreno
EGOT recipient Rita Moreno is a household name in Hollywood, who's admired for her work on-screen and on Broadway. The West Side Story star, both in the 1961 adaptation and the 2021 remake, has spoken candidly about constantly being cast in "ethnic" roles and her ultimate decision to take a 7-year acting break from Hollywood because of it.
"I became the house ethnic," the Puerto Rico-born actor told NPR in 2013 about the early days of her career. "And that meant I had to play anything that was not American. So I became this Gypsy girl, or I was a Polynesian girl, or I was an Egyptian girl." Another box she was pigeonholed into was the latina "spitfire"...a word she would initially come to despise.
The one-note roles she was being offered often made her "feel more and more and more diminished ." In a 2014 NPR interview , Rita added, "[T]here's a way of being racially insulting to someone without ever using the bad words. You get bypassed. It is assumed that you can only speak with an accent."
Kristina Bumphrey / Variety via Getty Images 7. Lucy Liu
Chinese-American actor Lucy Liu has played notable roles in projects such as Ally McBeal , Charlie's Angels , Mulan II , Elementary , and Set It Up . Although her resume is filled with diverse characters, she was met with obstacles along the way. In an op-ed for the Washington Post , Lucy opened up about staying away from roles that reinforce stereotypes:
"I feel fortunate to have 'moved the needle' a little with some mainstream success, but it is circumscribed, and there is still much further to go. Progress in advancing perceptions on race in this country is not linear; it’s not easy to shake off nearly 200 years of reductive images and condescension. Hollywood frequently imagines a more progressive world than our reality; it’s one of the reasons Charlie’s Angels was so important to me. As part of something so iconic, my character Alex Munday normalized Asian identity for a mainstream audience and made a piece of Americana a little more inclusive.
If I can’t play certain roles because mainstream Americans still see me as Other, and I don’t want to be cast only in 'typically Asian' roles because they reinforce stereotypes, I start to feel the walls of the metaphorical box we AAPI women stand in.
Asians in America have made incredible contributions, yet we’re still thought of as Other. We are still categorized and viewed as dragon ladies or new iterations of delicate, domestic geishas — modern toile. These stereotypes can be not only constricting but also deadly."
Sonia Recchia / Getty Images 8. Mahershala Ali
Mahershala Ali, who has starred in an array of diverse projects, spoke out about straying away from contributing to the stereotypes that plague Hollywood. Because of that and his amazing performance, of course, Mahershala won an Academy Award for his role in Moonlight .
He told TV Line : "As a Black man, it's very difficult for you to feel good about contributing in that way, and sort of already enabling and supporting certain stereotypes, but with [Moonlight ], it's a project that is written from the inside out, people who have had these experiences and know these people as full human beings."
Mike Coppola / Getty Images 9. Aidy Bryant
Aidy Bryant rose to fame on Saturday Night Live, bringing comedic sketches to life and making people laugh. But one thing she doesn't find funny is making fatness the butt of every joke. Aidy confessed to turning down roles for that specific reason in an Adweek interview, including an unnamed production where "a man was in prison, and the other guys in prison were like, 'You've got to get an ugly girl to be your prison wife, and she'll come and bring you food and have sex with you!'"
"I remember being like, 'Oh, they think that this is a fun thing for me, and it's so insulting.' Those were some of the moments where I was like, 'Is this what it is in Hollywood? I think I might have to write for myself...'"
She eventually went off and created the Hulu series Shrill and cast herself as the lead.
Gilbert Flores / Variety via Getty Images 10. Maybe Burke
Actor Maybe Burke, who identifies as agender (neither male nor female and uses the pronoun "they"), said options for trans actors are also scarce due to stereotypes and outdated beliefs about the trans community. They recalled casting directors complimenting their look and then offering them an insensitive role for a trans woman: “It’s a homeless sex worker who gets murdered, and I’m like, ‘Thank you so much, I’m so glad you saw that in me.’”
They've also been told by casting directors that they were looking for some further in their "transition" and someone "passable" as a cis woman: “I’m a complete human being walking into the room, and you’re telling me I’m not finished,” they said.
Eugene Gologursky / Getty Images for NYCLU 11. Viola Davis
EGOT recipient Viola Davis has played some exemplary roles throughout her career, from a criminal defense attorney/law professor in How to Get Away With Murder to the leader of an all-female warrior unit in The Woman King . Despite the variety in her resume, Viola revealed the types of stereotypical projects that dark-skinned women are often given.
“If I wanted to play a mother whose family lives in a low-income neighborhood and my son was a gang member who died in a drive-by shooting, I could get that made,” Viola said in an interview with Vanity Fair. “If I played a woman who was looking to recreate herself by flying to Nice and sleeping with five men at the age of 56 — looking like me, I'm going to have a hard time pushing that one, even as Viola Davis.
A lot of it is based in race. It really is. Let's be honest. If I had my same features and I were five shades lighter, it would just be a little bit different. And if I had blonde hair, blue eyes and even a wide nose, it would be even a little bit different than what it is now. We could talk about colorism. We could talk about race. It pisses me off, and it has broken my heart—on a number of projects, which I won't name."
Rodin Eckenroth / Getty Images Do you know another actor who put their integrity before a paycheck? Let us know in the comments below!