Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh calls out producers’ failure to light black actors properly

Adjoa Andoh has claimed she called out Bridgerton producers whilst filming the latest season of the show for their failure to light black actors properly.

Having played Lady Danbury throughout all four seasons of the show, Adjoa has since said that the show’s huge success has done “nothing” to change the way that black actors are treated in the industry.

Speaking on the Stirring It Up podcast last week, she explained that the problem isn’t exclusive to the show, but that having to address it whilst trying to do “the gift I’m blessed with” was “very tiring and distracting”.

via Netflix

Adjoa has played Lady Danbury since 2020 and has received international recognition for her portrayal of the character. However after sitting down with Andi and Miquita Oliver on the pod, she began to discuss racism within the industry and her experiences on set.

Working previously in theatre as well as television and film, Adjoa explained that she didn’t feel powerful in her career because of the racism she’s experienced.

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“I don’t want to have to walk onto set [and raise an issue]. I want to be Lady Danbury and be totally engaged in that.”

Touching on her performance on the show, she told Andi and Miquita that having to think about anything other than her role is “very tiring and very distracting”. Adjoa said: “When people say we’re being chippy or militant I want to say that I’m just a human being and I just want to do the gift I’m blessed with and I want to do it in a free way.

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“I’m not asking for a special revelation, I just want to live in my gift. That’s not my sh*t – I don’t want to think about it.”

Despite the claims, Adjoa revealed on the podcast that she and show creator Shonda Rhimes worked closely on Lady Danbury’s backstory, adding in details about her West African heritage. Explaining the importance of including real details, she described Shonda as “smart and open” to her ideas.

This isn’t the first time Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh made comments on her experiences of racism. Adjoa, who also starred in the Bridgerton spin off, Queen Charlotte, alongside Golda Rosheuval, previously spoke publicly about having her head smashed against walls at school as a child and how she was not allowed to friends’ and potential boyfriends’ homes due to the colour of her skin.

Her comments on the King’s coronation last year being incredibly “white” also resulted in ITV receiving more than 8,000 Ofcom complaints.

Bridgerton season three is available on Netflix now –  For more like this look at the comments of Adjoa Andoh on Bridgerton production and all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Netflix has been approached for comment. 

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Featured image via Netflix and Instagram @adjoa.andoh