Among the plethora of roles he has tackled over the years, Jamie Foxx’s portrayal of Django remains one of his most notable performances, arguably only second to his depiction of Ray Charles. While Django Unchained witnesses impeccable performances from everyone aboard, especially DiCaprio, it doesn’t take away the spotlight from Foxx, who brings his A-game into the mix.
But unlike his other roles, filming the Tarantino-led western was pretty personal for the Oscar winner, as the Collateral Star expressed that he had a personal connection with the character of Django.
Jamie Foxx’s Whole Life Prepared Him for Django Unchained
Growing up in Texas, Jamie Foxx faced a copious amount of racism as a kid. And even before his Hollywood career took off, things weren’t exactly great for the actor as he was once denied entry on stage in a college musical due to his ethnicity.
Following the hardships he had to endure, the actor felt that his whole life prepared him for Django Unchained, as he deeply related to the film’s racially charged subject matter. This resulted in him leaving his stardom behind before heading into production, completely engrossing himself into Django, a freed slave, who embarks on the mission to rescue his enslaved wife. Per IMDb, the actor expressed,
“I faced racism as a kid and I felt like I knew the DNA of the script because I had lived it. I already had pieces of Django inside me and I could bring that to the character. I don’t trip on the racial stuff. I get it. I don’t trip on the word nigger. I’ve heard it, it’s been said. My life prepared me for this.”
But despite preparing himself to relive the horrors that his ancestors had to suffer, Foxx had an unsettling experience filming on Evergreen Plantation in Louisiana, which was once a real working plantation.
Leonardo DiCaprio Had a Hard Time Saying the Racial Slur Recalled Jamie Foxx
While the film was slightly criticized for its intense language for a certain portion of its release, Jamie Foxx felt the inclusion was necessary. However, Leonardo DiCaprio, who played the evil Candle Candie with no redeeming traits, had a hard time playing the hard-hearted plantation owner, as he wasn’t comfortable saying the N-word. But Samuel L. Jackson and Foxx were having none of it, which did end up resulting in a hilarious situation. Foxx recalled,
“Leonardo DiCaprio had a problem saying ni*ger. ‘Pal, pal, it’s tough for me to say this’. And I remember Samuel L. Jackson going, ‘Get over it motherf*cker. It’s just another Tuesday motherf*cker. I don’t give a fuck about these motherf*ckers. Look who I am motherf*cker, f*ck’. And it was like, Leo, we’re not friends. I said this is just another thursday. This is your property. These aren’t humans.”
Foxx’s intimate connection with the story of Django following its parallel to his own story did end up boosting Tarantino’s Western, which became a huge hit among critics and fans.
Django Unchained is available to rent on Apple TV.
Source: IMDb
