Home General Omar Sy Addresses Charges Of “Uncle Tom Racism” In French Comedy “Intouchables”

Omar Sy Addresses Charges Of “Uncle Tom Racism” In French Comedy “Intouchables”

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The César Award-winning actor on the social climates of France and the U.S., American critics’ attack on The Intouchables and his forthcoming collaboration with Michel Gondry.
Omar Sy Addresses Charges Of "Uncle Tom Racism" In French Comedy "Intouchables"
Omar Sy

The name Omar Sy might not ring a bell for most of us outside of France. This year, the 34-year-old picked up the César Award for Best Actor—the French equivalent of the Oscars—beating out fellow countryman Jean Dujardin, who wound up taking home the Best Actor statue for The Artist at the Academy Awards. Not only that, Sy made history with his César win as the first black actor to receive this highest acting honor in France. With The Intouchables, what Sy accomplishes with such blinding charisma has everything to do with his unfiltered embodiment of his character. When we sat down with Sy for our chat at the Weinstein Company in New York, he mirrored his character, Driss, in more ways than one. He’s quick to laugh, no nonsense and always looking for the next joke.

A phenomenon in France where it shattered box-office records to become one of the highest grossing films of all time, The Intouchables tells the true story of the unlikely friendship between a handicapped millionaire (François Cluzet) and his unconventional Senegalese caretaker (Sy).

The Intouchables hits select theaters on May 25.

You’re virtually unknown here in the States, for now at least. What’s your background and how did you get to where you are now?

I actually started out in radio. I grew up with someone I’ve now known forever—a famous comedian in France—in the same neighborhood. He ran a radio program and one day he needed somebody for a last minute substitution, and we came up with this idea where I would play a retired soccer player from Senegal. We created this role for me and it worked out very well. After that, we decided to continue collaborating and created new characters that I could play. That’s how my career on the radio started out. After that, I did some work for Canal+ and that worked out as well. I think I started working with Éric [Toledano] and Olivier [Nakache], the directors of The Intouchables, on their second short film. Little by little, I took on more film roles. They were smaller roles until The Intouchables came along in which I’m in a leading role for the first time.

The Intouchables has gone onto become one of the highest grossing films of all time in France. What is it about this film that’s attracting such a wide audience?

Well, it’s about optimism and hope. I think there’s a general work climate these days that’s based around pessimism and everybody tends to be very gloomy. It’s difficult to see positive elements in the world around us now and even for the future. It’s comforting to go and see a movie like this where you see something positive. There are positive elements in the movie that are within everyone’s reach. It’s about friendship and about love. That’s something that anyone can attain.

The Los Angeles Times has said that the film has some ‘crying racism.’ Variety proclaimed that your role as Driss is ‘a role barely removed from the jolly house slave of yore.’ I don’t personally share these views, but I would love to get your thoughts on what certain American critics are saying.

I didn’t see any racist elements. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have done this movie. I would need to see what those critics are talking about, specifically. I did read a few things here and there, but I want to make it clear that, in France, things are very different than the U.S. on a social level. The two societies have not evolved in the same way. In France, when you look at the poor and the privileged in the city suburbs, all immigrant communities live together and share the same environment. You’ll find people from places like Northern Africa and Portugal living together. In the U.S., it’s not like that. I would need more information on what these critics are saying, but we should look at all the details. Then we could explain the reasons behind it. It would take a long time and we would need a whole new movie about that.

And added to the fact that this is inspired by a true story. These characters weren’t invented in the filmmakers’ minds. Not entirely, anyway.

That’s true. All of these events really happened. I think that makes all of the positive elements of the film more powerful because they’re not products of invention. It’s something that really happened.

How faithful was the film to the actual story?

It’s quite faithful to the real story, but it is a film in the end with certain elements that were introduced in order for it to be more cinematic. The role of Philippe was close to the actual person whereas the character of Driss was written specifically for me. They introduced a lot of my own personality and attitude to the character. Driss is more distanced from the true person compared to Philippe. The story is adapted in that way. That was the real gift that the filmmakers gave me.

The Weinstein Company is packaging a remake of The Intouchables. What are your thoughts?

I think remakes are generally interesting provided that they’re not just cutting and pasting the original. As we were discussing, France and the U.S. have very different social climates, so it will be very interesting to see how it’s adapted to suit the American reality. Maybe by watching the remake we will better understand the elements that these American critics have taken issues with.

How do you steer your career at this point in your career?

I have no anticipation. [Laughs] I just trust my feelings. There’s no real strategy there. I’m very lucky now that I get to choose whatever I want to do. I can be wherever I want to be and do whatever I want to do.

We recently spoke to Audrey Tautou and discussed Michel Gondry’s The Foam of the Days, which you both star in. I think she mentioned that the current title is Mood Indigo.

The book it’s based on is called Foam of the Daze, but every time the book is republished, it’s given a new title like Mood Indigo.

What can you reveal?

There’s a very interesting cast on board: Romain Duris, Aïssa Maïga, Alain Chabat… The movie will be very close to Michel Gondry’s crazy universe that we’re all familiar with. It will be really interesting to see how he will pull it off. I really have no idea what to expect because I haven’t started shooting it. I’m going to let myself go, willfully dive into it and go wherever he wants to take me. I really trust him. He’s a hard person to follow, but I’m very happy to do it.

The Intouchables seems like the perfect springboard for your transition to Hollywood. Is that something you would be open to exploring?

Have you heard anything specific? Do you know more about it? [Laughs] I really have no idea. It depends on whom I end up meeting. It’s all about finding the right story, the right role, the right filmmaker, the right producer… I have no idea what will show up. I will follow my feelings and do whatever I find interesting. I don’t want to start asking myself these questions now. I’ll cross that bridge when I get there. I can’t imagine what will happen to me.

These chance encounters are so significant in the film industry. As director Nanni Moretti recently said in an interview, sometimes talent doesn’t even play into the equation. This doesn’t apply to you, obviously.

Meeting the right people is definitely really important. It has been a very significant factor in my own career. Talking about talent is really hard. It’s not for me to say whether I have talent or not. Other people have to tell me that. You definitely have to work hard. In terms of chance encounters and meeting new people, it’s a valuable element in everybody’s life, not necessarily just in cinema. To go back to The Intouchables, this is what the story is about. Philippe and Driss meet by chance and it changes both of their lives. In terms of lucky encounters, there’s a whole discussion about luck. What is luck?

Source: Anthem Magazine

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