In hot water. Seth Rogen is apologizing for an incident involving blackface that occurred on the set of a film he is currently producing alongside Evan Goldberg, titled Good Boys.
“I should start by saying this shouldn’t have happened, and I’m terribly sorry it did,” the 36-year-old actor said in a statement on Thursday, August 2. “I won’t give excuses for why it happened. I’ll just say that as soon as I was made aware of it, I ensured we put an end to it – and I give my word that on any project my team and I are involved in, we will take every precaution to make sure something similar does not take place again. I’m engaging in conversations to make sure I find the best way to do that. It’s on me to be proactive. Reacting isn’t enough.”
Rogen faced backlash after TMZ published photos of a child actor wearing dark face makeup on the Vancouver set while standing in for star Keith L. Williams on Wednesday, August 1. While both the substitute actor and 11-year-old Williams are African American, the former child’s light skin was made visibly darker to more closely match Williams’ own complexion.
According to TMZ, a complaint was filed with producers over the incident.
A source close to the Good Universe production company claimed that it’s “not uncommon for lighting purposes to match actors’ skin tones.” However, three cinematographers and a director of photography told Indiewire the practice is unusual. Typically, a stand-in with a complexion closer to the actor’s is hired.
Good Boys stars Williams, Jacob Tremblay, Molly Gordon and Brady Noon as a group of 12-year-olds who skip school to fix a broken toy. The film is expected to be released in 2019.
