STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

Chris Rock Slams Hollywood's Treatment of Black Women

The comedian doesn't hold back.

Chris Rock is set to host the upcoming Oscars ceremony, and while he is not backing out of his duties as MC, he is speaking out about the inequality African-American actresses face in Hollywood.

In the March Hollywood Issue of Essence Magazine, the actor said, "I've never done a movie, any movie, the silliest movie, where someone, some studio person hasn't gone, 'Does the girl have to be Black?'"

Rock said that even if the Black actress gets the gig, nine times out of 10, she's underpaid in comparison to her male counterparts. "It happens every time," he said. "Black women get paid less than everybody in Hollywood. Everybody's talking about Jennifer Lawrence. Talk to Gabrielle Union. If you want to hear stories, talk to Nia Long. Talk to Kerry Washington."

The Top Five star advocated for female actresses of color, saying all they want is to be honored and respected just as much as their praised white female fellow actresses.

"They would love to get to Jennifer Lawrence's place, or just be treated with the same amount of respect," he said. "Black women are the least represented on-screen. They just are. You can go see a lot of movies and there's not one Black women in there with, like, a real part. It's a real, real, real problem."

So what about the whole #OscarsSoWhite controversy that he was found in the middle of, recently? This is what he had to say: "I'm going to do my best. It could go horribly wrong. Don't ever thing that it can't. That's when it goes — when you don't think there's any chance of it going wrong."

In case you missed any part of what's been happening, catch up on the controversy with BET Breaks, below:

BET.com is your No. 1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music. 

(Photo: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for Comedy Central)

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.