British-born star picked to play Nelson Mandela in biopic after casting agent says local actors lack stature for role
Morgan Freeman, Danny Glover, David Harewood, Dennis Haysbert, Terrence Howard, Clarke Peters, Sidney Poitier and now Idris Elba: all are actors who have been cast as Nelson Mandela – yet none is South African.
This is already a sore point for local performers, and now salt has been rubbed in the wound. Why do they never get the chance to play their national hero? Because they are too short, according to the country's top casting agent.
Mandela, a towering figure in every sense, is 6ft 4ins (1.93 metres) tall: actors in South Africa just don't measure up, says Moonyeenn Lee, who picked British-born Elba – star of The Wire and Luther – for a planned film adaptation of Mandela's autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom.
"I was free to cast a South African, and I auditioned some extraordinary local actors," Lee told the Sunday newspaper City Press. "But the main problem is the height. Mandela is a particularly tall man. On average, South African actors are not 1.9 metres."
The country also lacked experienced actors, as a consequence of apartheid, Lee added. "The younger actors have had a chance to go and study and learn and work with internationals. The older actors, growing up during apartheid, had to deal with the cultural boycott, [with] very few roles on television and almost none in film. There simply aren't enough actors to choose from."
Her explanations have gone down badly with the body representing actors, the Creative Workers Union of South Africa. Its president, Mabutho "Kid" Sithole, told the City Press: "We are not impressed. So, no one is tall enough: there's always some reason to avoid using South African actors, and having other people tell our stories. They use these stars for commercial reasons and the problem is, South African business is not funding our own films.
"Meanwhile, South African actors are good enough for the other roles. We see this happen over and over. Tomorrow there will be a film about Walter Sisulu, and then what? No one is short enough?
"You tell me now: how will this actor pronounce Qunu, where Mandela was born, or Rolihlahla, his real name?"
Lee rejected the union's criticism. "They must look at the height," she told the Guardian. "It's always been a problem."
Sello Maake Ka-Ncube, a South African actor who won a regional theatre award for his portrayal of Mandela in the drama Rivonia Trial – and is 1.8m tall – said: "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I don't think we are too short for anything. But I respect the director's vision."
The film of Long Walk to Freedom has been in the pipeline for years and Elba's casting is yet to be confirmed by its producers. Lee said almost all the other roles, including Mandela aged seven and 16, would be played by South African actors.
A separate film project, Winnie, provoked controversy by casting Hollywood stars Terrence Howard and Jennifer Hudson as Nelson and Winnie Mandela. The casting of Morgan Freeman in Invictus was also criticised.
City Press reports that only two other South African-born actors have played Mandela: Simon Sabela, in a German TV docudrama, and Lindani Nkosi, in Drum.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/19/mandela-idris-elba-south-africa
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