Mike Colter wants roles beyond Luke Cage that have a message
As Luke Cage, Mike Colter works hard to save the day for the people of Harlem. As an actor, he wants to take roles that have “something to say.”
Playing Luke Cage, Mike Colter is an unbreakable hero who is as much a symbol for his community as he is someone who is willing to get down and dirty to protect the people in his neighborhood. In real life, Colter is apparently at a point where he has no problem expressing his “wokeness” to the world.
In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor opens up about his desire to speak out on issues, while also taking roles that have a message behind them. Colter recently joined Twitter and since hitting the social media platform, he’s spoken about everything from politics to racism to police brutality.
When it comes to his career, Colter said he prefers to pick characters that really have “something to say.”
While Luke Cage is a superhero who can withstand bullets while saving the day, Mike Colter doesn’t have the same abilities. When he wants to make a difference in the world, he speaks out on social media or pursues roles that have meaning.
In one of his recent roles in the indie drama, Skin, Colter took on the role of Daryle Lamont Jenkins, a real-life activist of the antifascist-movement. Colter’s character helps a former “white-power skinhead” turn his life around and leave his circle of neo-Nazi friends. “This film is very in touch with the society we’re in now,” Colter said of Skin.
The actor admits that when he was growing up, he had an advantage in the way he was raised. He was surrounded by people who helped him to be prosperous, while also supporting and teaching him. However, once he hit Hollywood he realized that things were different there. No matter how liberal the community might be, it still had a divide when it came to roles for black actors.
In fact, when he first started in Hollywood, Colter was really only able to go out for roles that were considered to be stereotypically black, such as athletes and gangsters. Even when he finally took on an athletic role in Million Dollar Baby, it led to more offers for roles exactly like that. Mike Colter explained that he kept turning the offers down because what he really wanted was roles that were “racially ambiguous.”
Though his next big role was a drug dealer on The Good Wife, Colter felt he was able to do more with the part. He saw the character as not just a drug dealer, but a man who could have been a mover and a shaker. This was a character he saw as a businessman with a degree.
Mike Colter said that even with the role of Luke Cage, his goal was to have people see something they did not expect. It was about sending a message and proving these characters are more than what they appear to be.
Luke Cage has proven to be a beacon of hope in his corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As for Mike Colter, he’s hoping new roles he takes on can provide hope and encouragement. Rather than take on the typical roles that Hollywood might try and dictate to him because of the color of his skin, it seems that Colter is looking to break free from the mold and show the world that he has something to say.