Manisha AR October 15, 2020. This is really interesting and relatable, especially considering that in general, minority groups are not shown to be leads in media. I would so often slip into roles that society deemed acceptable for meId try to be sassy, I would try to relate to my white classmates more, I would try to be less black. Now that I think back, trying to dilute myself so that other people deemed me worthy seems like such a waste of time. shes just a caricature, a type. Marvel movies incorporate the trope. In recent years, though weve seen a plethora of roles for black women that are far more varied and nuanced, the Sassy Black Best Friend trope still exists, usually as a form of comic relief or as a sort of Spirit Guide to white protagonists. Films like the timeless teen comedy 16 Candles or last year's. Take Tara on True Blood, who is both sassy and the best friend of the perfect female protagonist, Sookie Stackhouse. Shes alson one of the most hated characters on the show fans criticize her for always being angry and for her blind hatred of all those super hot vampires who have emotionally traumatized her in the past. What I didnt learn, was how to be the bestwell,me. In addition, black people in Real Life should definitely not be listed. it's how we know she's going to be the next victim of body-snatching Mama Cecile who had said earlier that she wants a black woman to inhabit.). But don't write offClueless as just another teen movie. So in celebration of its 20th birthday, here are six lessons to learn from Clueless. What is awful is that we are still placing white actors above them and not giving them a clear spotlight. But not only that, these movies/TVshows will have much better content, and can become richer, more complexand just as successful. And quite honestly I loved Stacey Dashs character (still do!). All that being said, the token black friend (or BBF) is a stereotype that has mostly been weeded out due to minorities seeking roles of higher acclaim. Like most people my age, I gained aseriouslyconcerning amount of knowledge from watching movies. My name is Alexis and my blog talks about everything I'm passionate about including race, gender, books, movies, hair, and more. Cookies help us deliver our services. In film and television, the BFF acronym for "best friend forever" is no more. I have already mentioned a few but the most popular examples would be a lot of our coming to age teenage films such as Clueless, 10 things I hate about you, and almost every Disney show and film besides Thats So Raven. When people watch Miless character they wont think oh are all white people like this?. In. Do they have their own story? Automatically we can tell Miles (Rafael Casal) is a white man but not representative of all white people, he is just playing a role. She is literally so wild. Thanks, Clueless! One of his Grandpas iswell, a senile old Blacula. In this day and age, it has been and still is time to see change made. representation matters and people of color shouldnt feel as if they arent at least Black people are booking roles in Blockbuster films and famous TV shows, Why White Privileged Men Brand Angry Anti-Racist Women Hysterical, eeing how little Hollywood cared about casting Black people, Black people shouldnt be casted for roles just for the cast to appear diverse., TV Director Calls James Corden 'Most Difficult & Obnoxious' Celebrity He's Worked With In His 25-Year Career, Makeup Artist Reveals Her 'Rude' Encounter With Kevin Spacey While Applying Fake Mustache To His Face On Set, Fans Fear Disgraced Nickelodeon Producer Dan Schneider Fathered Jamie Lynn Spears's Daughter After Seeing Comparison Photos, 6 Ways To Be An Ally For Asian-Americans Right Now. Cluelessis a 1995 teen comedy from Amy Heckerling, starring Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Stacey Dashand the late Brittany Murphy. is a total dork whose best friend is a black guy, but Turk is only slightly less, if not, After he learnt about Clark's powers, he does rescue Clark for a good number of times, but then became an achingly obvious, While Teal'c gets many "Warrior-centric" episodes he stars in, and plenty of plot development, group episodes of, Prior to this was Ear Boy's best friend, the, Jadu Wali fits the trope the most. Subverting the usual implication of the character being broad-minded, both Draco and Blaise are pretty big. Ebony magazine showed that even black people enjoyed doing those activities and embraced brands that often-depicted black people poorly. Oprah's producing a movie with Chris Rock based on it. on how he realized at a cocktail party that most of his friends were white. Chris Rock makes fun of this in one of his standups when he says "All my black friends have a bunch of white friends, and all my white friends have one black friend! In our reality, our world is diverse. It was really exhausting and kind of painful. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available from thestaff@tvtropes.org. (The novels were also the basis for a TV series in the mid-'80's. Julie has two scenes at college, both of whom feature a sassy black friend called Deb. Captain American/Steve Rogers and Falcon/Sam Wilson. On the other hand, Jim and Huck don't always see eye-to-eye on some issues, such as their discussions over the wives of Henry the Eighth, the many different languages in the world, or the Solomon's decision to cut a child in half. and their black, best friend/sidekick. By submitting your email, you agree to our, Clueless turns 20: 6 way existential lessons it taughtus, What we know about the Dadeville, Alabama, mass shooting, Why Democrats best Trump indictment attack may be none at all, The outrage over Black teen Ralph Yarls shooting, explained, The worst-case scenario for drought on the Colorado River, Sign up for the This is an all too familiar trope of the BBF. Several productions have used minorities, specifically black actors, as sidekicks to the white stars. "Some of my best friends are werewolves!" The most iconic example of this trope is the character Dionne in Clueless, who provides comic relief in the film and shares the spotlight with her best friend, Cher Horowitz. Directed by Amy Heckerling, the movie also stars Paul Rudd, Brittany Murphy, Donald Faison, Stacey Dash, and Wallace Shawn. The Hate U Give was definitely monumental for Blacks, not only because it showcased a cast of diverse Black actors, but it also showed the duality of how Blacks are portrayed by society. We cant rely on ads alone to do that. BLACK-PLOITATION. Of course, it is expected; how can everybody relate to a film when it excludes parts of the world we see? People watch Clueless and see Dionnes character and automatically assume that black women are not afraid to speak their minds, are sassy, and are always in your face. What do they all have in common? Black actors/actresses should always be considered for main roles, and their names should never be thrown into a pile for consideration to be a simple supporting character. Think back to every, single movie I just mentioned. He tried to remedy this by putting an ad for himself on Craigslist for a black friend. In the future, I hope to work as a journalist for a local or entertainment news site. Plus, the only cop in Chicago who seems to like Al is Officer Dan. Set in Beverly Hills and focusing on spoiled, shallow, but essentially good hearted teenager Cher Horowitz. Lawson gives a little synopsis about the show without giving away too much. ", Also inverted and parodied in "How to Not Get Your Ass Kicked by the Police" with this advice: "Get a White Friend.". The figure of the black best friend is a woman who exists merely as a supporting role to highlight and contrast the qualities of her white best friend. Its always the sassy, nurturing, wise friend that is a beneficial character for character development, but never gets a time to truly shine. Her character had her own story, her own relationships outside of her friendship with Cher (the main character). Since I wrote that piece, Hollywood hasn't slowed its . It's hard to say, but there's one thing for sure. Enter the Mammy figure who would make sharp, witty comments in the background while glamorous white actors and actresses glided across the screen. Sure, Dionne (Stacey Dash) could technically be considered an example of the "black best friend" trope, but she gets her own plot lines and character quirks wholly outside of Cher. Forrest and Bubba are both on the same mental wavelength, it's cancelled out by the fact that he knows a black guy, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Ghost in the Shell, Aloha, and Deathnote). Including, When talking about the "sensitive issue of race", Happens a lot in animated shows. Dwayne from GTAIV (provided you let him live), who is one of the nicest characters in the game. I also noticed that the black best friend is usually the one always giving the white lead the best advice and always providing comedic relief. These films all star a white protagonist. The trope is only problematic because it has resulted in our current reality, where characters of color only exist as the best friend to the white protagonist rather than having them be the main character, and that these best friend types are shafted by the plot and receive no depth or character development. J.D. Set in Beverly Hills and focusing on spoiled, shallow, but essentially good hearted teenager Cher Horowitz. Its Even I definitely can relate to this feeling that Appiah discusses, as I always felt as if I had to make myself palatable so that other people would accept me. Somewill argue that at least Black people are booking roles in Blockbuster films and famous TV shows, and theyre not wrong; that's progress. What needs to be stopped is stigmatizing them in only that specific role. Please log in using one of these methods to post your comment: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Sure, she had a best friend who had no shortage of issues (seriously,the entire premise of the movie is kind of weird) and shemight havebeen lacking a little in the morality department. Trouble In The Streets Debut Full Length Satisfy Saturn Is The Future. Huge milestone, but it doesnt hide the fact that as a character she really had no depth and no inner thoughts as the other characters. up with new ideas where the main character is black or a person of color. Now, the type has often been turned on its head sometimes in less and more successful ways. Voxs mission is to help everyone understand our weird, wonderful, complicated world, so that we can all help shape it. She said the studio "kept pressuring me to create more of a life for the boys in the film, to create more of an ensemble piece, which didn't make sense to me at all.". 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