AFTER 13 YEARS OF TOILING IN THE

background of mainstream movies and

stealing scenes in everything fromLee

Daniels’ The Butler to Steven Spielberg’s

Lincoln, David Oyelowo finally reached the

promised land. The British actor of Nige-

rian descent was heralded for his perfor-

mance as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the

A

With Madina Nalwanga inQueen of Katwe

Rosamund Pike

and Oyelowo in

A United Kingdom

2014 Best Picture nomineeSelma. Stardom

beckoned. It was time to cash in.

But rather than sign up for a big studio

blockbuster that would make his African

surname (pronounced O-yellow-o) a house-

hold one, Oyelowo chose a slew of starring

roles in microbudgeted films directed by

women—one of the smallest minority

groups in Hollywood. Of 2016’s 250 highest-

grossing films, only 7 percent were directed

by females, and most of Oyelowo’s directors

belong to an even tinier subset: women of

color. That was not by accident. “Who gets

to tell the story is very important to me,”

says Oyelowo, 40. “This medium is so pow-

erful, and [right now] I have just enough

collateral to create what I deem meaningful.

I have to do it while I can. The audience

deserves to see images of people of color

that are commensurate with the reality of

life here on planet Earth.”

That mindset fueled his decision to play

chess coach Robert Katende in Mira Nair’s

Queen of Katwe last year and to strive for six

years to get his new movie,A United King-

dom, which he also produced, into theaters.

It is directed by Amma Asante (Belle) and is

based on the true story of Seretse Khama

(Oyelowo), heir to the throne of Botswana,

who in the late 1940s put his legacy in jeop-

ardy and sparked an international crisis

when he fell in love with a white British

office worker (Rosamund Pike). The film is

romantic, thought-provoking, and beauti-

fully shot, but no one expected it to set the

box office on fire.

SinceSelma, which earned $52 million,

Oyelowo has starred in four films by female

directors. None has grossed more than

$9 million. Hollywood stars love to talk

about championing diversity. Oyelowo is

one of the few who’s taking action. But is it

holding him back? He doesn’t see it that

way. “AfterSelma, what was on offer was

‘Come and be a villain in our superhero

movie. Come and be on the periphery of

something big and loud and noisy,’” he says.

“But no. I’m proud to say I’ve never seen

anything I’ve turned down and said, ‘That’s

way better than I thought it would be.’”

The stakes, to Oyelowo, are higher than

that. “There are some people who ask, ‘What

has he made sinceSelma?’” saysSelma direc-

tor Ava DuVernay, who first met Oyelowo on

her second feature, 2012’sMiddle of Nowhere.

“But he’s bold in his moves, and whether or

not Hollywood will reward him, history will

reward him. He won’t take a role that he

doesn’t believe paints a bolder picture of

black masculinity, and he’s empowering

women by supporting their films, by being

their star. It’s unparalleled.”

76 EW.COM FEBRUARY 24/MARCH 3, 2017

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