Bridgerton’s Lady Danbury: All-white casts in costume drama are gone forever
- Adjoa Andoh predicts Bridgerton’s past influence will see only white casts
- She said there is a growing recognition that people of color played a big part in history
It was the hit TV series that reimagined Regency-era England as a country of equals when it came to racing – and now Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh has predicted its impact will lead to historical dramas starring all-white occupations could be a thing of the past.
The star, known to global audiences as the depraved Lady Danbury, said there was a growing realization that people of color played a bigger role in British history than previously thought.
“This genie is out of the bottle,” she said.
“I don’t think we’re going to be casting historical pieces all in white unless there’s a reason for it, maybe if the production is somewhere like Iceland in 5,000 BC. is settled. But I think even then there would have been a brave overseas traveler who would have sold scientific instruments or fabrics.”
Bridgerton, which launched on Netflix in 2020, features an ethnically diverse cast and has transformed the way viewers view historical drama.
Representing the past: Adjoa Andoh and Simone Ashley in the television series Bridgerton
Andoh, 60, has previously said she doesn’t play Lady Danbury as a “fake white person,” adding, “I’m the color that I am — and I play that.”
The acclaimed Shakespearean actress said it was important to have an accurate account of the nation’s past.
“The point is that historically we’ve cut out all people of color that were part of this nation, especially in the metropolitan areas,” she said.
“It’s about restoring historical accuracy to the centuries-old presence of people of color in this country. There is a thought that Othello is based on a black tailor that Shakespeare may have used in the 15th century.
Andoh’s words echo those of actor Ashley Thomas, who defended the new BBC adaptation of Great Expectations against claims it was “woken up” by its diverse cast.
The star, who plays scheming lawyer Jaggers, told the Times: “London was a cultural melting pot back then. Before the Windrush era, there were people from Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean. It’s important for shows to portray that. I don’t think it’s about getting ‘woke’, it’s about being on time.’
Andoh, 60, has previously said she doesn’t play Lady Danbury as a “fake white person,” adding, “I’m the color that I am — and I play that.”
Andoh plays Richard III. at the Liverpool Playhouse, but has not followed recent trends in the Evil Monarch’s gender change.
Playing him with her West Country accent, she said that as a black girl growing up in the Cotswolds, she identified with the alienation felt by the disfigured king.
“I read it in a child-friendly way,” she said. “It resonated, the lived experience of it. It’s really fundamental, this idea of ”it’s not fair”. It doesn’t matter what prejudices there are. That’s what it does to the human soul.”
Adjoa Andoh is starring in Richard III at the Liverpool Playhouse until April 22nd and then at the Rose Theater in Kingston upon Thames from April 26th to May 13th