Taraji P. Henson Says Hollywood ‘Lied to Me' About Black Movies and TV Not Selling Overseas, Spent Years Being ‘Graceful in Getting Paid Less … Not Anymore Though!'
'I was just frustrated and it was making me bitter, and I'm not a bitter person,' Henson said, nodding to continued struggles in Hollywood over the lack of prominent roles, pay and awards recognition for women of color. 'I made a promise to myself if I ever got there then it's time to walk away. I'm not serving myself or the audience or the characters I play. Thank god I did that. I came back refreshed and with a new perspective.
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'Sometimes in the industry you make it about the trophies and the awards and that's never why i got into it,' Henson added. 'I came into this to change lives. The arts saved me. I was a little Black girl in the hood in D.C. during the crack epidemic. I'm supposed to be a statistic. I wasn't supposed to make it out but I did.'
Smith brought data to the conversation that supported Smith's frustration with Hollywood. Smith noted that while 54% of the top 200 movies of last year prominently featured girls and women, only 13% were women of color and only 1% featured a woman of color 45 years old or older.
'There are few women of color being given the opportunity,' Smith said about her takeaway from the numbers.
Henson said it was important for her to 'stop chasing the things I never came into the industry for' like awards and 'refocus.' She also noted that she had spent years being 'graceful in getting paid less than. Not anymore though!' When she returned from her month break in Bali, she dove head first into non-acting business opportunities like her beauty brand TPH 'instead of relying on that check from Hollywood.'
'I urge you all to speak up for yourself,' Henson told the women in attendance at the conversation. 'I have worked my butt off to garner the following I have. My following rides for me. That's an audience I procured through my hard work and the characters I play. I know a studio, when they call on me, they are calling on me because they know all these people are going to come and show up. That's my power. You need me because you need my following. Thank you, social media. Once I figured that out, I just started speaking up for myself.'
Henson said one of the defining moments in realizing she had power in Hollywood was when she discovered the industry's claim that Black projects don't sell oversees is just a myth. It happened during the international press tour for Fox's music drama series 'Empire,' which turned Henson into an international star as her character, the outspoken Cookie, became the series' most iconic role.
'When I did the international press for 'Empire,' up until then I was told Black doesn't translate overseas,' she said. 'Really? We went to Paris. Lee Daniels kept me a secret to the audience at a Q&A. The fans started asking the Cookie questions and he said, 'Why don't you ask her.' Before he could finish saying my name, the entire room erupted in applause and was screaming. For me? I got up on the stage and I ugly-faced cried. The myth was busting. You lied to me my entire career. I leave the stage and there are fans outside who know my name. That changed the game.'
As Henson re-enters Hollywood with new perspective, she said she is embracing 'the freedom of doing what I want to do and not being controlled by the industry or the machine.' She next stars in the Netflix drama film 'Straw,' streaming June 6.
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Buzz Feed
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It feels like a glitch in the matrix, but we are closer to the year 2050 than we are to 2000 and it's messing up my take on time MAJORLY. I am already feeling old, and I haven't even begun yet. A LOT has happened in the last 25 years in pop culture. From Y2K to Labubu, there have been incredible moments in pop culture to remember for years to come, and at this point, I cannot count them on my fingers. What can I say: as a generation, we are just that iconic! Before we forget our roots (Britney Spears songs and low-rise jeans), let's revisit these 61 iconic and momentous pop culture events from the past 25 years: 2000: Jennifer Lopez wears THAT iconic green Versace dress to the Grammy awards. If there were an internet to break, JLo would have broken it. 2001: The first movie of the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and The Sorceror's Stone, releases. 2001: Apple's iPod is introduced, marking the start of a technological revolution of portable mobile devices. 2001: Britney Spears performs I'm A Slave 4 U, with a Burmese python at the VMAs. 2002: Halle Berry wins the Oscar for Best Actress, becoming the first Black woman to win one. 2002: Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake split up, resulting in the iconic track, Cry Me A River. 2003: Beyoncé goes solo with her debut album, Dangerously In Love, starting her legendary career and establishing herself as a pop culture icon. 2003: The iconic Madonna-Britney-Christina VMA kiss sets the stage ablaze. 2004: Facebook is launched, heralding the dominance of social media on the human conscience. 2004: Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction sparks controversy. 2004: Tina Fey's directorial debut, Mean Girls, was released, eventually becoming a cult classic. 2004: The F.R.I.E.N.D.S. finale episode becomes the fourth most-watched TV episode of all time, with 52.3 million viewers. 2005: YouTube goes live, and the era of long-form videos begins. 2006: The film The Da Vinci Code released, and it sparked intense backlash and discourse, with many Christian groups worldwide calling it blasphemous. 2007: The first iPhone is released. 2007: Keeping Up With The Kardashians debuts, marking a new genre within reality TV. 2008: Iron Man hits theatres, marking the beginning of the MCU universe. 2008: Heath Ledger passes away at 28, and wins a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for The Dark Knight. 2009: Barack Obama becomes the first Black president of the United States. 2009: Kanye West interrupts Taylor Swift on stage as she accepts her award for Best Female Video, igniting a long-lasting feud between the two stars. 2009: The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, passes away. 2009: Slumdog Millionaire takes home 8 Oscars for Best Picture, Best Original Score, Best Director, Best Sound Mixing, Best Cinematography, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, and Best Sound Editing. 2009: James Cameron releases Avatar, which would go on to re-define 3D cinema by becoming the highest-grossing film ever—beating Cameron's own Titanic. 2010: One Direction is formed on X-factor, re-starting the boy band phenomenon. 2010: Instagram was launched. 2012: The viral Korean song, Gangnam Style, is released by Psy, sending waves across countries—with 5.49 billion views on YouTube. 2012: Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises battle it out at the Box Office. 2014: Ellen Degeneres takes the most iconic selfie at the Academy Awards. 2014: Kim Kardashian's PAPER magazine photoshoot breaks the internet. 2015: Zayn Malik leaves One Direction, breaking hearts everywhere. 2015: Selfie sticks are seen literally everywhere! 2016: Leonardo DiCaprio finally wins his first Oscar for Best Male Lead for The Revenant. 2016: Pokemon Go has everyone running on the streets, attempting to catch Pokemon on their phones. 2017: The New York Times publishes an article on the investigation into Harvey Weinstein sexually harassing numerous actresses, and #MeToo movement takes over the world. 2018: Beyonce headlines at Coachella. 2019: The chaotic "Storm Area 51" meme was born. It started with an event on Facebook called "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All Of Us," with over 2 million people RSVPing. It was a joke to raid the military base of the US, with the aim to uncover "aliens." Ultimately, only a few showed up, and it was a rather peaceful festival than a raid. 2020: Bong Joon Ho's Parasite becomes the first foreign language film to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. 2020: WHO declares COVID-19 a global pandemic. 2021: Netflix releases Squid Game, and it was a HUGE success—with over 1.6 billion hours watched in the first month. 2021: The F.R.I.E.N.D.S. reunion has us all reminiscing about our favorite moments with the cast. 2022: Will Smith slaps Chris Rock on live television during the Academy Awards. 2022: Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's defamation trial is televised. 2022: Argentina wins the Fifa World Cup, and Messi lifts the trophy—a day we had all waited for! 2023: The Barbenheimer summer has theaters swamped with fans, re-igniting our love for film once again. 2023: The SAG-AFTRA strikes begin over labor rights, with 160,000 workers walking off the sets, demanding wage increases and better protection against AI. 2024: The rise of 'Brat' culture—thanks to Charli XCX! With her new album, everyone had a Brat summer and gave zero f**ks. 2024: Taylor Swift's Eras tour is a massive success, grossing a record-breaking $2.07 billion! 2025: Kendrick Lamar performs a historic routine at the Super Bowl Halftime Show, singing his iconic song Not Like Us—amid his feud with Drake. 2025: SNL holds its 50th anniversary celebration with 15 million fans watching. And now some of the unforgettable Desi pop culture moments: 2000: Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai is released, marking the debut of Hrithik Roshan, propelling him into an overnight sensation. 2000: Priyanka Chopra wins Miss World, and thus begins her journey to stardom. 2001: Karan Johar's Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham releases and sets Shah Rukh Khan's name in stone in Bollywood. 2002: Lagaan is nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. 2006: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Rang De Basanti hits theatres, and would go on to influence protests and movements IRL. 2008: Madhur Bhandarkar's Fashion, starring Priyanka Chopra, hits theatres, and goes on to win the National Award. 2011: India wins the ICC World Cup with MS Dhoni as the captain of the Indian team. 2013: The legendary Indian cricket player, Sachin Tendulkar, retires from cricket. 2023: Naatu Naatu from RRR wins the Academy Award for Best Original Song. 2023: Diljit Dosanjh brings Punjab to Coachella, becoming the first Punjabi singer to do so. 2025: Royal Challengers Bengaluru finally lifted the IPL trophy after18 years! My fingers are hurting from typing up all of these momentous events. Wow—we have all lived through these amazing pop culture moments; it definitely feels like this ALL happened a few days ago. Now age is catching up to me. I do not know what 2050 holds for us—whether climate change will do its thing or not—but one thing is for sure: we will be getting some good cultural material to keep us going till then and have hope.
