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Friday, March 7, 2008 | 10:04am
Robert Downey Jr. Plays a Black Soldier in Ben Stiller’s Parody Flick
Did he cross the line? Will Rev. Sharpton break out the boycott troops?
Ben Stiller’s controversial comedy “Tropic Thunder” about the film industry may be in hot water. Yesterday, Entertainment Weekly announced that Robert Downey Jr. as a black man. Before you get all bent out of shape let me explain.
The film is designed to parody the acting profession. Downey Jr. plays white man, “Kirk Lazarus” a manic Hollywood actor who (I guess) is so desperate for this gig that he’s cast to play a black soldier.
I was “trying to push it as far as you can within reality,” Stiller told the EW. He claims to parody over-the-top actors, not African-Americans.  Stiller recently screened a rough cut of the film and it scored high with African-Americans. He was relieved at the reaction. ”It seems people really embrace it,” he says…”If it’s done right, it could be the type of role you called Peter Sellers to do 35 years ago. If you don’t do it right, we’re going to hell.”
Is that Al “Captain African America” Sharpton I hear coming up the stairs? I will admit however the Downey Jr’s. make-up is unbelievable. Much better than the job done on that TV Show Black And White where the two families swap races.
The studio plans to debut the trailer online March 17. I’m sure Mike will have that one up on Highbrid Nation for you. The film, ironically was also the project that Owen Wilson had to leave due to his reported suicide attempt.
I personally do not see a problem with it. It has nothing to do with accurate historical value, and it is not portraying an actual person, it is a parody or comedy. Before Al Boy gets his panties in a bunch and Jesse the Kid has to pull them out, they need to take a look at Eddie when he played a whit man in Coming to America, when The Rock played a white(historically portrayed character)in Gridiron Gang, and there are a couple more. Cedric playing in Honeymooners….anyway, this cannot be looked at other than a good make-up job.
there was a movie called “White Girls” which no one complained about. So I’m not sure there is much room for black people to say anything.
I totally forgot about that one.
yeah cause it was stupid
Yeah the Wayans Brothers play white people in “White Chicks” so Al Sharpton might wanna speak on it unless he is willing to back it up.
From one perspective, it HAS to be better than C. Thomas Howell in the “seminal classic” Soul Man..
exactly, silly, decent makeup
This doesn’t seem to exploit, downgrade, demean (ironicaly unlike the Wayans’ “White Chicks”) so it’s cool…it’s not that serious. Make-up is probably the best I’ve seen. I’m curious to see how he portrays a black man…voice, deameanor and swagger.
if there is an actor that could pull it off its Robert Downy Jr.. He’s one of the best in the game right now.
He’s really Dirty though. Not a trustworthy kind of cat.
Is it just me or does Downey resemble Fred Williamson in the photo with this article?
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