Director Steve McQueen didn’t really campaign for Best Director, even though he was only the third black director to ever be nominated. McQueen and producer Brad Pitt seemed to put the emphasis on 12 Years A Slave winning Best Picture, and they put money into Lupita Nyong’o’s Best Supporting Actress campaign as well. Michael Fassbender’s Supporting Actor campaign barely existed, Chiwetel Ejiofor seemed happy enough with the nomination and John Ridley’s screenwriter campaign barely had any heat (although Ridley ended up winning). I think the plan was always to focus on Lupita and Best Picture, although I don’t know who decided that. McQueen has given a new interview where he discusses his Oscar win (as a producer, not director) and he makes it sound like he barely gives a crap about any of it. Okay then.
Steve McQueen says becoming the first black director to win a Best Picture Oscar was ”of no consequence” to him.
The ’12 Years a Slave’ director made the admission in an interview with BBC’s ‘Desert Island Discs’ host Kirsty Young, in which he claimed his accolade shouldn’t be considered a major landmark for the black community.
He explained: ”It’s not important to me at all. There’s nothing I don’t think black people can’t do so that’s of no consequence to me. I mean so what?”
The 2013 film – which stars Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender and Bennedict Cumberbatch – tells the story of an African-American man who is kidnapped and sold into slavery. McQueen, who lives and works in Amsterdam, also said he does not obsess about trying to please critics in Hollywood.
The 44-year-old explained: ”I don’t need money. If you don’t need money, you are free. You do want you want. The only thing they can offer you is money and if you don’t need it, there is no enticement.”
The London-born director is currently working on a drama based on the lives of black people in the city, which is set to air on the BBC.
Even with the double negative, I guess I believe him. He practiced what he preached by barely campaigning for Best Director, so I believe he doesn’t really care about winning solo awards. He just wanted to see Solomon Northup’s story honored, but even then… the Oscar doesn’t mean that much to him.
Meanwhile, did you know that McQueen is spearheading an effort to add Solomon Northup’s memoir added to high school curriculums all around America? He’s teamed with “the National School Boards Association, New Regency, Fox Searchlight and Penguin Books to provide free copies of his film, the book on which it was based and a study guide to America’s high schools.” You can read more about it here. The book should totally be part of history/English classes.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I didn’t read that as not giving a stuff for the Oscars in general – although I can well imagine that he doesn’t give a stuff. I read it as he doesn’t think it’s a big thing that he, AS A BLACK MAN, made a film that won Oscars. That’s a different thing entirely.
And I suppose if you won the Turner Prize a decade and a half ago, have been an official war artist and been made a CBE by Her Maj, all before the Academy even knew you were alive, you’re probably not going to be too fussed about the latest organisation to tell you you’re great.
He’s a golden child really, isn’t he? He could be a bit more gracious about it though – and at least acknowledge that not every young black guy from Acton is going to pass through the corridors of influence as smoothly as he has. Then again, if he was gracious like that, I suppose his art would be entirely different.
My thoughts exactly.
@ denisemich
Well Solomon Northup is an American citizen and this was an American story about American history and conditions that existed in what is now called America for 250 Years of its 400 year existence (almost 2/3 in fact )
Yes, I read it that way also. As a woman, I sort of roll my eyes when someone points out that a woman is the first woman such and such, as if it’s so amazing that a woman could rise to meet the challenge. I feel we should be past that point. It should be normal to expect a woman to do anything a man can do. I think he meant the same thing about people of color. We should be past that by now.
I wasn’t crazy about his comments about money, though I get what he means. If you’re unable to pay your bills, you can’t turn down work. But I don’t think you have to be rich to be free. You just have to have enough. I don’t know why it bothered me, because there’s a lot of truth in it. It just made money seem like the ultimate goal in life, and I think you can be happy without being rich.
Being the first Black anything is really an American concept and he is not American.
I also don’t understand how or why we would allow a British citizen to affect American school curriculum.
I think he would agree that money doesn’t buy happiness. Reading the interview again, he didn’t flat out say he was rich just that he “doesn’t need money”. He could just be living a moderate upper class lifestyle along with his wife. He makes low budget Indie movies that aren’t bringing in Marvel comics money. Sounds like he decided that ‘s enough money for his family and security for them.
I think his bigger point is many directors, actors, producers make certain films because they can make a ton more money than they already have. You can never be rich enough type motto. He’s simply saying that for HIM he is happy where he is at and is not motivated by money to make popcorn films that he has no interest in. He is an Indie guy and makes film about topics that interests HIM.
GNAT – McQueen is a few years older than me but I came from the same area of London. I have friends whose older siblings went to school with him. It wasn’t a great area and it was a really shite school in those days. I think successful people who come from that sort of background tend to quite strong views – either “I’ve done it so anyone can and if they don’t it’s their own fault” or “Thanks to my background, I’m a social justice warrior/campaigner for the people I left behind”. Either way, I can see why they’d take a view that money makes you free. He’s a stroppy one, though, through and through.
Yes, as I said, there’s a lot of truth in that. Thanks for the perspective. I have never been filthy rich, but I’ve never been hungry, either, so it’s easy for me to say money isn’t the key to freedom.
Same here!
My family went through some rough economical struggles in the past and that’s the main reason I’m studying the career I’m studying. Money can’t buy you happiness but poverty can’t buy you shit. It’s an awful saying, but true. More than freedom, I’d say money gives you safety. I totally get what he’s saying.
He’s given several interviews in which he has made very clear that he is racially blind ie it’s not something he thinks about and therefore doesn’t weigh his experiences along racial lines such that his achievements are honoured accordingly.
As for his passage through the arts scene, he came up at a really golden time for artists – the YA scene that has seen most of them become huge successes, from Chris Ofili to Damien Hurst.
Yes. But you can see why there’s a cognitive dissonance vis a vis his film work on black topics and with regards to an American audience where the debate is different, can’t you? Not making a value judgement on that; jus’ sayin’.
I always think it was a shame he won the Turner in the year of Tracey Emin’s bed.
I’m interested to see what this upcoming TV drama of his will be like. I confess, a bit of me was disappointed he went for an American story in TYAS. I was hoping for something British – Billy Waters the busker, or one of the stories turned up by SI Martin, something like that.
Actually I don’t. As someone above said, that’s an american thing and there are lots of us non american blacks who don’t prescribe to that view.
Do you remember several months ago we talked about ‘Americanah’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche? She explains this difference in that book better than I ever could.
I think I said it badly, LAK. I mean that, as a black filmmaker who won an Oscar with a film about black history, you can see why people might assume identity was a factor for him and be surprised when he says it isn’t. That’s the dissonance: surprising others, not McQueen’s position per se.
Although I will say, not sure it’s entirely an American thing. The first black, Asian, gay, woman, etc, in any area (arts, politics, whatever) is also a “thing” here, isn’t it?
(Not sure I’ve explained it any better now, to be honest!)
And maybe the fact that he lives in Amsterdam helps him about not thinking in race terms. From what I know (maybe I’m wrong) and what I’ve seen in Amsterdam, there’s a lot of black people there who sort of totally mingle with the rest of the crowd. They are just people and I didn’t see any sign of discrimination. But again, I may be wrong.
I see him as a sophisticated European who isn’t hung up on Hollywood games and obsessions.
He sounds different because we’re so used to all that junk.
the airclap he gave John Ridley still amuses me, tho.
That was EVERYTHING I crack up everytime I see a gif of it.
Highlight of the Oscars for me. I’m sure I’d still giggle like a maniac if I saw it again.
If the Academy want to eliminate the racial divide they need to get rid of the Best Foreign Film category and nominate the best non English speaking films in the Best Film category,
I agree. It’s a very american thing to see anything else, anywhere else in world as foreign. It’s like the World music awards…
Ha ha ha. If he *hadn’t* won the Oscar, I’m sure he would be singing a different tune.
Great initiative and an all around great guy.
I am glad he is not greedy, there are plenty of people that don’t need the money but still want it and would do anything for it!
I like what he says here. I took it to mean that he doesnt need an award to validate his work, nor does he make films to get rich. He does it because he loves it. If his work was never acknowledged by the racist Academy, he would still be proud of the story that he brought to the screen. Not sure if I’m making sense, but that’s what I got from his comments.
Yes, although I think you said it better than he did. 🙂
I believe him.
He was burned by the Turner Prize when he was first nominated for that although he subsequently went on to win it. He’s not really put any effort into awards.
His approach to films isn’t exactly audience friendly in the way that Hollywood would prefer. His films stand out as a result.
Cool to see someone not give a damn about the oscars. People go so crazy over that crap. So what if Gary Oldman has less nominations than Jonah Hill. So what if Julianne Moore hasn’t won yet. These people aren’t creating laws on the film industry, they are handing statuettes of naked bald men to other people they find talented. This is one of those topics not worthy of a heated discussion.
Love your comment!! I agree 100%
The Oscars are most about hype and politics anyway. Most of the really influencial films didn’t win at the Oscars.
@josefa, the reason people goes crazy about that crap is because most of the Oscar winners can demand a bigger pay check. It’s all about the money and the prestige that an Oscar winner gets.
I think I didn’t word that right. The oscar undeniably gives you a huge boost in your career, so people in the film industry can give craps about it. I’m talking about common folk. Like, girl. Julianne is a great actress and a lovely woman but it’s not like her acting career has any incidence on your salary.
I don’t believe him. He was the one on stage jumping up and down. You don’t get that excited about winning something you are don’t care about. Also, he grabbed the Oscar out of the hands of the person handing him the Oscar.
I was coming to post the same thing. I’m starting to get tired of these people who say they don’t care about the Oscars, yet they are there on Oscar night. He didn’t look happy when Cuaron won the Oscar for best director.
He campaigned, he did Q & A and was at various events.
I remember that it was funny seeing this grown man doing that. He was happy that the film won but I don’t think he takes the award as validating him or his talent. I think a lot of people see getting such an award as validating their careers and such where he does not.
He does Q & A on all of the films he has done as do pretty much all other people involved in film. There are constant engagements of this sort. I don’t think he did them with the goal of hoping to look good for people so that they would vote for him. It’s part of the doing a film.
I think he is just happy doing what he does. As I have seen all the films he has done as well as some short films he has done, I have seen several interviews. Once you get to know him through these interviews, you come to realize that he is just very honest but to some people it comes off as rude.
I listened to the whole segment (everyone should – he’s awesome) and this is really crappy “journalism”. He responded “so what” in response to a question about whether he felt overwhelmed about his own achievement as a black man. It was patronizing. His answer was no because he believed he could do anything.
But I guess since he’s a successful black man, everything he says will be twisted to make him seem “ungrateful”.
Thanks Lola for telling the context of his responses. I hate questions that ask “well you’ve done very well for a Black person/woman/Asian” etc. It’s patronizing as if it’s a shock that minorities can achieve things that Whites do. No one is going to tell Brad Pitt that his Oscar is impressive for a White male. It comes across as patronizing.
No one on here has said he’s ungrateful.
Makes sense. Race is a different thing here than abroad. My dad wasn’t born in the states and the first time he even knew race was a factor was when he moved here. Which is sad for so many reasons but yep.
I believe what he’s saying because like the article says he didn’t campaign at all in Oscar season. He made a great movie and pushed for the picture and the actors to get recognition but not himself.
His sass at the Oacars is still one of my favorite moments. *airclaps*
Maybe I just have a lot of misconceptions, but from what I have seen and heard there is racial prejudice, colorism and exoticism outside of the US as well. The US has a unique racial experience because of slavery. However, in Europe I believe black people share many of the same types of experiences. I am a little confused by people acting like the US is the only place in the world with racial issues.
What publication put out that statement? I’m kind of gobsmacked that in a film called 12 Years a Slave the only actors mentioned in the statement were the white ones. Wait, change ‘gobsmacked’ with, ‘not surprised at all’.