Viola Davis says she “betrayed” herself by appearing in The Help

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Viola Davis has mentioned before that she regrets taking the role of Aibileen Clark in 2011's THE HELP but in a recent interview with "Vanity Fair", Davis elaborates on her stance, especially in the wake of the recent Black Lives Matter protests.

Davis used the "Vanity Fair" interview to shine a bigger light on why THE HELP has become problematic for her and on how the film's storyline caters primarily to its white audience:

"Not a lot of narratives are also invested in humanity, they're invested in the idea of what it means to be Black, but…it's catering to the white audience."

Davis goes on to explain that while the movie provides insight into some of the experiences of Black Americans, its structure and the voices it chooses to centralize do not contribute to a greater culture of understanding. Even though she has issues with her role in THE HELP, Davis doesn't regret working with its cast and writer-director. She does retreat the film's faux-deep insight into her character that set on the wrong path by opting to tell the story through a white perspective. THE HELP went on to become a huge box office hit and a major player at the Academy Awards, scoring a Best Picture nomination and Best Actress and Supporting Actress nominations for Davis, Octavia Spencer, and Jessica Chastain. Spencer would go on to win her award and Davis doesn't deny the overall popularity of the movie. During the start of the Black Lives Matter protests, the film became the top title on Netflix but many critics and writers pointed out that there were many other films that would bring a bigger understanding to the issues at hand.

"There's no one who's not entertained by The Help but there's a part of me that feels like I betrayed myself, and my people, because I was in a movie that wasn't really to tell the whole truth."

Davis has every right to feel different about the film now, even if it was highly successful and earned her accolades. Some time and perspective make you think differently about certain things and it's not as if she's saying she was in a bad film, but a movie that needed a bit more insight into the Black perspective.

Do YOU agree with Davis' assessment of THE HELP?