Daniel Kaluuya took a casually racist moment in stride after a reporter confused him with fellow Black actor Leslie Odom Jr. during a news conference after the Oscars.
South African journalist Margaret Gardiner gave big Karen energy when she interviewed Kaluuya after the award ceremony.
“I’ve been following you since the beginning of your career, and I was wondering what it meant for you to be directed by Regina, what this means for you at this time with the world and the state that it’s in?” she asked.
It’s a solid question, except Kaluuya wasn’t directed by Regina King. He won the Best Supporting Actor role for Judas And The Black Messiah, directed by Shaka King. Regina directed One Night in Miami, which featured Odom, according to Yahoo.
Daniel Kaluuya responds to a journalist who mistook him for Leslie Odom Jr. at the #Oscars and asked him: “What was it like being directed by Regina [King]?”
Odom Jr. was in #OneNightInMiami, directed by King. Kaluuya won for #JudasAndTheBlackMessiah. pic.twitter.com/CWLe0O9jZQ
— Film Updates (@TheFilmUpdates) April 26, 2021
Kaluuya noticed the error immediately and like many other negroes, his facial expression said it all. When he finally spoke, the Get Out star asked Gardiner to repeat her question. She must have noticed her mistake because she rephrased the question.
“I was wondering what it meant for you to win with the world and the state that it’s in in the moment?” Gardiner.
The cringy moment went viral.
“Journalist Margaret Gardiner asked Daniel Kaluuya what it was like to be directed by Regina King (he wasn’t). No apology, nothing. Daniel showed so much grace not pulling her up on her error and allowing her to rephrase her question #Oscars,” wrote one viewer.
Journalist Margaret Gardiner asked Daniel Kaluuya what it was like to be directed by Regina King (he wasn't). No apology, nothing. Daniel showed so much grace not pulling her up on her error and allowing her to rephrase her question #Oscars pic.twitter.com/gUhdINK109
— Alannah Francis 🇧🇧 (@AlannahFrancis1) April 26, 2021
By now you’ve probably seen the video of a white reporter asking Daniel Kaluuya about working with Regina King (mistaking him for Leslie Odom Jr.) It’s this 6 secs that broke me though. You can see him processing how fucked up it was. pic.twitter.com/Tk7xfeUlsP
— Kathleen Newman-Bremang (@KathleenNB) April 26, 2021
“I simply cannot watch that clip of the journalist mixing up Daniel Kaluuya and Leslie Odom, Jr. I feel like I would crumble into dust from the secondhand embarrassment and rage,” another commenter wrote.
I simply cannot watch that clip of the journalist mixing up Daniel Kaluuya and Leslie Odom, Jr.
I feel like I would crumble into dust from the secondhand embarrassment and rage.
— Ashton Lattimore (@ashtonlattimore) April 27, 2021
Gardiner took to her own Twitter page to explain herself, and she made the situation more confusing. Her account is now private, by the way.
“#DanielKaluuya I did not mistake you for Leslie Odom Jnr. I’m sorry if it seemed that way,” she wrote, per Complex. “I had wanted to ask about Regina King not being nominated as a director for One Night in Miami, and your win for Judas and the Black Messiah for the community at this time.”
She also blamed the flub on bad audio.
“There was a sound issue so I dropped the part about Regina King and restated my question,” she said in a second tweet. What does it mean for the community at this time. When I listed (sic) to the audio, I do understand, but there no confusion.”
Even Oscar winners aren’t safe from “they all look alike” syndrome.
