Earlier this year, Avengers: Endgame star Anthony Mackie called Marvel Studios out for a lack of diversity behind the scenes, and criticised the fact that their only primarily Black cast and crew was on a movie with a Black lead (2018's Black Panther). In a new interview with Fatherly, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier star elaborated on those comments.
"I’ll say this: I don’t think what’s happening is a racism problem," the actor clarified. "I think it’s an unawareness problem. With Marvel, I really think with most companies, they feel like they’re doing what they should be doing. In no way, shape, or form, is it enough. My big thing is, put your money where your mouth is. You can’t cast a Black dude as one of your main superheroes and not expect him to have that conversation. It’s just in my DNA to have that conversation."
"It’s a huge opportunity for me to be part of the Marvel universe so it’s my job to make sure the Marvel universe is as good as it can be," Mackie continued, sounding a lot like Captain America. "Anyone who’s big in our industry, if they have a party at their house, their party is 98 percent white. If you go to their office and their office is 98 percent white, that reflects their reality."
Taking of Cap, it's expected that Mackie will pick up that mantle following the upcoming Disney+ series (which was recently delayed from next month to an undisclosed premiere date), and he went on to talk about how it felt to be handed the mantle of Captain America from Marvel Studios.
"It was humbling, just simply because of my background and where I came from," he explained. "It’s even more humbling considering where we are as a country. Marvel has done a lot as far as actors in front of the camera. Having Captain America pass the shield to a Black guy. Every studio has to do more about ushering more people into the business."
Clearly, Mackie plans to use his platform as the new Captain America to raise awareness of race issues in Hollywood, and that's no bad thing given the current climate.
What are your thoughts on the actor's remarks here?