The hashtag #Damonsplaining has gone viral on Twitter, because Matt Damon recently explained to a black female Project Greenlight mentor why the only black character in a film was a prostitute who gets hit by a white character, according to Jezebel .
The woman offering her opinion about a black character named Harmony – the only black character, who is cast as a hooker that gets hit by a white pimp – is Effie Brown . Brown is a film producer who has won an Independent Spirit Producers Award and has received acclaim for her recent Dear White People movie. It’s a film that ironically focuses on such issues of diversity.
“I just would want to urge people to think about whoever this director is – the way that they’re going to treat the character of Harmony. Her being a prostitute, the only black person being a hooker who gets hit by her white pimp.”
Damon came back with a lesson for Effie that has Twitter clowning Matt with video clips of Hollywood Shuffle and Al Jolson and more.
“I think on the surface they look like one thing. But they might end up giving us something that we don’t want. When you’re talking about diversity, you do it in the casting of the film, not in the casting of the show.”
That answer sent Effie on an exhalation that obviously took her by surprise.
Accordingly, Damon and Ben Affleck – the duo who created the Project Greenlight passion project that provides aspiring moviemakers with the chance to make a movie – are catching heat for Matt’s comments.
Matt Damon needs to open his eyes on diversity: Who’s behind the camera does matter as much as who’s on-screen http://t.co/4YtvixbnqG
— Salon (@Salon) September 14, 2015
Some Twitter users point to the irony of Matt trying to explain to a successful black female producer his lessons on diversity and casting African-American roles in Hollywood.
If I have questions about diversity and what it means to me as a woman of color, I’ll ask Matt Damon #Damonsplaining pic.twitter.com/iTw7ayYwgM
— Black Girl Nerds (@BlackGirlNerds) September 14, 2015
Affleck is noticeably quiet in the video clip.
Meanwhile, folks on Twitter are even pulling up old clips of Steve Martin in The Jerk , with Martin’s character explaining that he was born a poor black child. The humor hides the anger that certain folks have at Damon’s response and his hubris at attempting to explain away a theme that is too often seen in Hollywood films. Effie complained about the dearth of diversity in films, and the fact that the sole black character that was cast in a derogatory manner – as a black woman hooker slapped by a white pimp.
Instead of empathizing or using the moment as a teachable one, Damon tried to explain it away. Hence, #Damonsplaining is going viral.
[Image via Jeff Vespa /Contour By Getty Images]
