Fox TV's new show Gotham has been extremely popular, debuting to high ratings and critical acclaim this fall, but accusations of racism and improper practices threaten to stop the shows new found success.
Kelsee Devoreaux, a longtime stunt woman for 'Gotham' star Jada Pinkett-Smith is speaking out against allegations that the show used a white stunt double with their face painted black to fill in on the show.
A Deadline article exposing the alleged incident was published earlier this week eliciting apologies from Warner Bros. While Pinkett-Smith has remained mum on the controversy, SAG claims in a statement that "the circumstance has been resolved."
"With respect to this issue in general, the relevant SAG-AFTRA contract is clear: the practice known as "painting down" is presumptively improper. It further states that when the stunt performer doubles for a role which is identifiable as Black/African American and the race of the double is also identifiable, stunt coordinators shall endeavor to cast qualified persons of the same sex and/or race involved," a SAG rep told the media.
"In other words: the practice of "painting down" is unacceptable anywhere and particularly so in a production center like New York City with so many qualified stunt women of color trained for this type of work."
"This situation has not been resolved," Deveroux told RadarOnline, stating, "The stunt-coordinator who may have been responsible for this is still working on the show!"
Should the Gotham stunt coordinator be fired for this misstep? And why hasn't Jada Pinkett spoken up about this issue? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.
Source: RadarOnline
