Idris Elba might play the next James Bond (which isn’t true…at least not so far). Again, there is absolutely no resemblance between Elba and the many other James Bond actors who came before him and that is what made a lot of people angry about it.

The main difference between that dislike in the Annie and Bond roles, and the dislike that many have against Zoe Saldana (who is of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent) playing Nina Simone, is the fact that Nina was a real person whose memory, persona, and looks are forever etched in the minds of us all, so for some people, it’s kind of hard to adjust to what they may perceive as Nina being represented as something she was not. Others say it’s no big deal, but Zoe never held her tongue about the harsh criticism she received for being “too light” for the role and not having the musical chops to play a music legend like Nina.

Zoe herself, now admittedly feels the same way as ,any of her critics, after spending the past two years saying the opposite by responding to the Nina Simone criticism like this in 2013:
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“The Nina Simone story needed to be told, and I’m really blessed that I did it. I’m human. I wish I was made of steel and so certain things wouldn’t affect me. Just like everybody else I feel very strongly about Nina Simone, and that (this) was a story that needed to be told. I do believe that if everybody had more information about how this all came to be, it might help,” she added. “But then again, I’m not here to get the acceptance of people. I’m here to be an artist first.”

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Now Zoe has expanded on her previous comments regarding her playing Nina Simone in the upcoming issue of InStyle magazine:

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“I didn’t think I was right for the part, and I know a lot of people will agree, but then again, I don’t think Elizabeth Taylor was right for ‘Cleopatra’ either,” she said in the interview. “An artist is colorless, genderless… It’s more complex than just ‘Oh, you chose the Halle Berry look-alike to play a dark, strikingly beautiful, iconic Black woman.’ The truth is, they chose an artist who was willing to sacrifice herself. We needed to tell her story because she deserves it.”

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And there it is people. Zoe Saldana is taking that role and owning it, and it looks like she will represent it to the fullest. Only time will tell whether or not her portrayal of the dynamic, socially conscious Nina Simone is convincing. The Nina biopic will be hitting theaters real soon, so be on the lookout for it.

Do you think Zoe made a good point?

-ILoveOldSchoolMusic, Old School news with a new point of view