I love John Cusak and most of his body of work but frankly I was on the fence about seeing his new disaster flick “2012″ until I found out that he’d be sharing the screen with British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor. The brother plays a presidential scientific advisor in this ‘end of the world’ scenario that did big box office last weekend. So I will definitely be checking him out this weekend (since this is not one of those kill the black folks first kind of films). USA Today talked to Ejiofor earlier this week and reminded me just how much I love this man’s work as well as how underrated he is, especially in our community.
Some of us may only remember him best as Denzel Washington’s sidekick in both “American Gangster” and “Inside Man” but in addition to these popular films Ejiofor has built up quite a resume in indie flicks as well. From the flamboyant drag queen, Lola, in “Kinky Boots” to Okwe, a Nigerian doctor turned cab driver/hotel worker, in “Dirty Pretty Things” and Dewey Hughes, the program director, in Don Cheadle’s amazing “Talk to Me” the brother showcases that he can inhabit a character. Thandie Newton, who’s also in “2012″ told USA Today had this to say about Ejiofor:
“To work with him again all these years later and see how much he’s evolved as an actor is something special,” Newton says. “He has gravity. He stands firm in his beliefs when he plays his characters. There’s a real weight and rootedness to what he does. He’s very confident.”
So why doesn’t this brother have more buzz? What’s interesting is that Ejiofor gets more work (and works with more marquee names like Angelina Jolie in next year’s “Salt”) than say Idris Elba. But Elba had a role that got our collective attention, none other than Stringer Bell in “The Wire” and Ejiofor hasn’t had that kind of opportunity.
Hey Hollywood, why don’t you give it to him?
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