Ever since his breakout role in 1996’s Basquiat, Jeffrey Wright has been considered one of our best actors. However, that’s come as something of a double-edged sword. He’s so reliable, that Wright often finds himself in key supporting roles rather than as the lead. That could be about to change. There’s real Best Actor Oscar buzz swirling for Wright’s performance in American Fiction, and the acclaim is long overdue.
In American Fiction, Jeffrey Wright plays Thelonius “Monk” Ellison, a frustrated author and literary scholar. He’s got a complicated relationship with his family, a nonexistent love life, and anger over the portrayal of Black stereotypes in books written by more successful Black authors. To put a fine point on it, Monk adopts a pseudonym and writes his own book filled with Black inner-city cliches, only to be shocked when it becomes a bestseller and he must keep the con going for a multitude of reasons.
I was fortunate to spend a few minutes talking with Jeffrey Wright about American Fiction, his thoughts on the criticisms in the film, any agreement he might share with Monk, and how the entertainment industry as a whole could learn a thing or two about telling Black stories.
American Fiction expands to more theaters on December 22nd, before going nationwide in January. Check out the interview below. You can also find my interview with director Cord Jefferson here, and my review here.
