Will Poulter Defends 'Detroit' Director Kathryn Bigelow and 'the Dismantling of White Privilege'
Detroit, a harrowing film about the real-life 1967 Detroit riots, depicts the brutal deaths of three black teens at the hands of white municipal police.
While some have praised the film for shining a glaring spotlight on racism and police brutality – issues that are still all too prevalent in America and elsewhere today – critics have questioned the decision to have a white director, Kathryn Bigelow, tackle the subject matter.
"Do white filmmakers have the right to make a movie like Detroit?" asked Variety's Owen Gleiberman, while The New Yorker's Richard Brody called the film a "moral failure" in its graphic depiction of the monstrous acts committed against its black subjects.
Bigelow herself has admitted she initially had reservations about taking on the project.
"I thought, 'Am I the perfect person to tell this story? No'," the Oscar-winning director of The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty told Variety. "However, I'm able to tell this story, and it's been 50 years since it's been told."
During a recent interview, TheFIX asked stars Anthony Mackie and Will Poulterabout the controversy. While Mackie declined to comment, Poulter was quick to defend the director.
"My view on it is that in 2017 social justice and civil rights are only a reality for a very select number of people, and I think that — without detracting from the great work that has been done by the people who were affected by prejudice and social injustice — not enough is being done by white people, particularly when it comes to dismantling the systems that continue to oppress people and benefit an elite few," said Poulter, who plays a racist and sadistic police officer in the film.
"And so, I think it's a good example of the dismantling of white privilege when a white person chooses to tell a story that isn't just about white people and white people problems. I think if Kathryn just concerned herself with that, she'd only be contributing to the problem and further intensifying issues we're facing."
He continued, "I think when given an opportunity and invited to participate in a conversation or the solution around race relations, as white people, we should heap up that opportunity and not deny the opportunity because we'll only ever continue to be part of the problem."
Watch the video interview above to hear the actors discuss filming Detroit and how they handled the intense shoot.
Detroit is in Australian cinemas now.
