We know things are about to get serious when Drew Barrymore scoots her chair closer to her guest and holds their hand. During today’s episode of The Drew Barrymore Show, actress Nia Long revealed to the audience why she didn’t get a part in Charlie’s Angels, which was produced by Barrymore’s production company, prompting a discussion about diversity in Hollywood.
Reflecting on her chemistry read with Barrymore for the 2000 film, Long said she thought it went “really well.” However, when she learned she lost out on the role, she was told her “eyebrows were too sophisticated” and she “looked too old next to Drew.”
“Now that I’m older and wiser and we’ve been in this business a long time, I think what was happening during that time is, there were all these conversations at that time about diversity,” she explained. “But people weren’t really pulling the trigger.”
She clarified that she doesn’t think the instance had anything to with Barrymore or her production company, Flower Films. Instead, she pointed to “the fear of really putting a Black woman into a film that never really cast anyone Black.”
She continued, “What I will say now is, things have changed a little. I thank god for producers like you because I know you’re aware and you’re sensitive to it because you’re having the conversation.”
Barrymore opened up about how all of their pitches for Charlie’s Angels “had diversity” in them, even saying she and her business partner felt “nervous and bad” when it was only her and Cameron Diaz who were cast at the time. She also noted that the odd reasoning for why Long was told she didn’t get the part was “bewildering.”
The guest, who assured that she didn’t think the message came from Barrymore, said she is “101% positive that it came from a studio [executive] that has no concept and understanding of the importance of diversity, let alone what you stand for.”
She told Barrymore, “Because you’ve been in this game, Drew, for a very long time, and I know your heart, and I see your show, and I know who you are, so this was never anything that I took personal at all. But I’m glad that we’re having the conversation.”
The Drew Barrymore Show airs on weekdays on CBS. You can check the website for local airtimes.
