Selma’s Carmen Ejogo: The Oscars could become irrelevant

06 Feb 2015

Awards shows could be on their way to extinction, according to Carmen Ejogo, who plays Martin Luther King's wife, Coretta, in new film Selma.

The movie hits cinemas today, documenting Martin Luther King's civil rights march from Selma, Alabama to the state capital Montgomery in 1965. It was a crucial moment in black people obtaining the vote; the first of the three marches was met with violence from the police, who charged into the unarmed crowds on horses, hitting them with clubs and showering them with gas. People were seriously injured and some killed. It was all broadcast on live television, prompting a heightened awareness of racial injustice in the US. King's final march was a success, marking a huge step in black civil rights.

It's a powerful, engaging film and the performances from David Oyelowo, whom plays King, and Carmen Ejogo, who plays his wife Coretta, are nothing short of exceptional. Oyelowo has been consistently praised for his weighty, very human portrayal of the preacher and activist, and yet he was not nominated for Best Actor the Oscars. In fact, Selma received only two Academy Award nods.

It's a snub that hasn't gone unnoticed by the press or the public. When the nominations were revealed last month, the hashtags #WhiteOscars and #OscarsSoWhite quickly began trending on Twitter.

Ejogo believes that the Academy's reluctance to acknowledge Selma fully is symbolic that awards shows aren't as useful or relevant as they once were.

"There were so many performances this year that didn't get a look in," she told "Not just black performances, but in general. And this speaks of the narrow parameters that the Academy looks at film and cinema. In the same way that beauty pageants are now considered outdated and irrelevant, the same thing could happen to all award shows and the Oscars aren't immune.

"At some point women began objecting to beauty pageants because they were not useful, relevant or emblematic of who women were. If awards shows don't reflect the diversity of creative expression, they run the risk of becoming antiquated."

She also says that the lateness of the film's opening could have played a part in it being so overlooked. Regardless though, Selma has already made an impact - even if it doesn't come in the form of a golden statue. A group of high-profile businessmen have paid for the film to be played in schools across the US to ensure that children understand why the vote matters and the struggle that people had to get it.

"There are days I wish I had the strength of character not to show up to the Oscars like Marlon Brando," said Ejogo. "But then I want to celebrate the film I'm so proud of. The opportunity for Selma is enormous and this type of film is rarely made in Hollywood."

The script for Selma had been in circulation for years before director Ava Duvernay decided to run with it. Ejogo, who had played Coretta once before in US television film Boycott, read in a newspaper that Oprah had signed up as producer on the project and contacted Duvernay to see if the film would include Coretta and if so what age would she be. When the actress found out how well suited to the part she'd be, Ejogo flew herself to LA to meet with the team.

"I was on Ava's radar but I wasn't the automatic choice, so I got aggressive about it," she laughed. "I paid for my own flights because I knew I had to talk to her. I wanted to fight for this part. Before my audition, I went to the hairdresser, got my hair set in rollers, dressed in a way that had a vintage feel and wore the right lipstick. I had to have it."

Ejogo stars in some of the scenes in which we learn the most about King as a man. Being the leader of such a huge movement took its toll, not just in terms of lives lost, but also on his family life. He was never at home, a fake sex tape was sent to his family home, he never saw his children - whom, his wife worried, were under constant threat. Through his work, he inadvertently placed his family life in danger.

"Coretta brings a human dimension to Martin that couldn't be realised without seeing his domestic life," she said. He had so much at stake at home, not just in terms of the movement. That strain shouldn't be forgotten."

Ejogo first played Coretta King when she was younger, newly married and hopeful, while her portrayal in Selma shows a very different woman - someone who is struggling to cope with the realities of King's fight. The actress met with the real Coretta following her first performance in the role in 2001.

"She gave me an overwhelming sense that there is still so much to be done," she said. "She's quite a presence and has such command of a room without saying a word. She hoped that Martin's legacy wouldn't be lost. By the end of the evening, she'd warmed up and we were singing We Shall Overcome and linking arms."

The cast of Selma were recently invited to the White House by Barack Obama, who had watched the film and liked it. There was an official White House screening, followed by a tour round the Oval Office.

"We had such a fun time and at the end he said, 'Look I've gotta kick you out soon, but, and I never do this, do you want to come and see the Oval Office?' I have got the best selfies in the world from that room, but annoyingly I can't put them on social media because Barack told me not to," said Ejogo. "It felt like we'd come full circle; watching that film with the first black President of America."

Ejogo might not be a name everyone is familiar with, although she's been working as an actress since 1986 when she appeared in musical film Absolute Beginners with David Bowie. She is picky when it comes to her roles and won't work unless the part is "optimum". She was born in west London but never went to drama school, focusing instead on her academic studies. She's been based in New York for the last 15 years and has two children. She'll next appear in Chet Baker biopic Born to Be Blue with Ethan Hawke.

Oh, and she's a member of Mensa, meaning she has an IQ among the top two percent of the country.

"I did the test when I was a teenager," she said, adding, "If I took the test now I'm pretty sure I'd fail. I have kids; my brain is frazzled. There are so many different kinds of intelligence, some of which serve you with no practical use at all and I have to wonder given the errors of judgement I've made in my life whether my IQ has been helpful!"