“Luther” and “The Wire” star Idris Elba has advocated that rather than banning or censoring, racism in film and TV series should be labelled and included as part of the warnings within ratings systems to advise viewers.
Elba’s comments came after several series have removed episodes from their streaming libraries – mostly for depictions of blackface – in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. Shows like “The Office,” “Community,” “30 Rock” and more all saw episodes pulled and apologies published by the showrunners.
Some entire series runs, including “Little Britain” and “Jonah from Tonga,” were also pulled. In an interview with Radio Times, Elba explains the reasoning for his suggestion of adding a potential ‘outdated or offensive viewpoints’ warning to ratings advisories:
“I’m very much a believer in freedom of speech. But the thing about freedom of speech is that it’s not suitable for everybody. That’s why we have a rating system: We tell you that this particular content is rated U, PG, 15, 18. To mock the truth, you have to know the truth. But to censor racist themes within a show, to pull it – wait a second, I think viewers should know that people made shows like this.
Out of respect for the time and the movement, commissioners and archive-holders pulling things they think are exceptionally tone-deaf at this time – fair enough and good for you. But I think, moving forward, people should know that freedom of speech is accepted, but the audience should know what they’re getting into.
I don’t believe in censorship. I believe that we should be allowed to say what we want to say. Because, after all, we’re story-makers.”
“Gone with the Wind” remains the most discussed example of the debate last month. The Oscar-winning feature was temporarily removed from HBO Max, but then restored without edits or censorship – only adding discussion and disclaimers explaining the historical context and racist depictions.
Elba’s UK comedy series “The Long Run” kicks off its third season on Sky One on Thursday July 23rd.
