lunch with producer/director and we talked about why so many brilliant POC actors quit after trying to get into tv. I told him my LA theory from listening to POC actor friends...
There are 4 main molds for POC actors in mainstream tv casting: leading man/woman, thug/rapper/hood, sexymodel, and comedian (the one role you can be fat but you better be stand-up comedian funny). Those are the roles that can pay the bills. Are there exceptions? Of course. But many brilliant theatre friends who don't fit in one of those molds have a hard time getting consistent parts in tv/film. Many move out to LA on a promise, flail around, start to doubt their talent, have to pay the bills, and wander off into other fields.
It feels like it's better to do indie movies or stay in theatre and make a name for yourself (like Viola Davis did at MTC and off-broadway for several years). In the past, the world just didn't make space for quirky POC actors. "Character actor' was pretty much a white artist field.
Few mainstream casting people were looking for a Black Steve Buscemi or a Mexican Shelley Duvall. It's why Issa Rae had to create her own platform with "Awkward Black Girl" that then got turned into "Insecure": she didn't have a place...so she made her own place at the table and then brought in others. I hope I'm wrong. I hope things are changing and there's more room for Blerd actors or queer geeky Latinos. Otherwise, hone your craft or make your own thing.
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