# Julia Roberts 'was first choice' to play black abolitionist Harriet Tubman **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 20, 2019, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710 "2019-11-20T15:07:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2019, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/21 "2019-11-20T21:21:16Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Anybody who saw _The Player_ wouldn’t be surprised by this. 🙂 > > hey, in a world where people of color can play the founding fathers, is this even a bad thing? > > (Ok it is.) Harriet Tubman: What took you so long? Abraham Lincoln: Traffic was a bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2019, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/22 "2019-11-20T21:44:44Z")
I liked the movie up to the point where Julia Tubman sold herself to that rich white guy. And then it became a Cinderella story. ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2019, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/23 "2019-11-20T21:51:20Z")
I’m actually intrigued how one would go about writing a movie about Harriet Tubman without acknowledging her race. Talk about a tough job. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2019, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/24 "2019-11-20T22:52:10Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I can 100% believe a single producer being this dumb. The only requirement for being a producer in Hollywood is, “has a lot of money,” and there’s a lot of really stupid rich people out there. But there’s also a massive gulf between, “One dipshit thought this was a good idea,” and “This idea had even the remotest chance of actually getting put into a movie.” Not a massive gulf. The two groups overlap enough to give Uwe Boll a career. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2019, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/25 "2019-11-20T22:57:20Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > Or, to take it in a negative light, the producer was basically saying that the only way the movie would be successful would be if a white woman was in the lead. Hey, it worked for _Ghost in the Shell._ :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/26 "2019-11-21T00:05:23Z")
Robert Downey, Jr, played a black GI in _ **Tropic Thunder** _, so I guess it’s not … impossible. :dubious:😕 ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/27 "2019-11-21T03:54:33Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > It doesn’t matter; you can’t really see the trains because they’re underground. I actually thought that when I was about 8 years old, then I read some books on Civil War history and learned the truth =) > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > The only way I can imagine Julia Roberts in the lead of a Harriet Tubman biopic is if the focus is shifted to another character, such as a (perhaps fictional) white woman working on the Underground Railroad. > > Actually scratch that. Instead of a Harriet Tubman biopic, imagine a film more broadly about the Underground Railroad. That would be interesting, and several white roles she could play. ---
**Author:** ![DerNils](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f14d63/32.png) [@DerNils](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DerNils)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/28 "2019-11-21T09:32:10Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Robert Downey, Jr, played a black GI in _ **Tropic Thunder** _, so I guess it’s not … impossible. :dubious:😕 Hey, he was just a dude playing a dude playing a dude. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/29 "2019-11-21T10:09:00Z")
The title of this thread makes it sound like Julia Roberts was cast and had accepted the role of Harriet Tubman, but just before filming began, she chose to not take the role, so it didn’t get made back in 1994. It’s much more likely that in the conversations in meetings where the screenwriter showed the script to various producers, one of them offhandedly suggested casting Roberts as Tubman, but that suggestion got ignored or ridiculed. Long before any movie gets made or almost gets made, there are lots of meetings with various film people, many of whom won’t have any connection with the movie that finally gets made (assuming that it ever gets made). Bizarre casting choices are often thrown around at these meetings. Read about the strange casting choices almost made for _The Godfather_: > **[The Godfather | Casting](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Godfather#Casting)** > > Puzo was first to show interest in having Marlon Brando portray Don Vito Corleone by sending a letter to Brando in which he stated Brando was the "only actor who can play the Godfather". Despite Puzo's wishes, the executives at Paramount were against having Brando, partly because of the poor performance of his recent films and also his short temper. Coppola favored Brando or Laurence Olivier for the role, but Olivier's agent refused the role claiming Olivier was sick; After months of debate betw... Downey played a white actor playing a black character in a movie within the movie _Tropic Thunder_, and the point of casting him was to make fun of stupid casting choices. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/30 "2019-11-21T14:58:22Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I can 100% believe a single producer being this dumb. The only requirement for being a producer in Hollywood is, “has a lot of money,” and there’s a lot of really stupid rich people out there. But there’s also a massive gulf between, “One dipshit thought this was a good idea,” and “This idea had even the remotest chance of actually getting put into a movie.” So Harriet Tubman fighting a giant spider in the third act is out? ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/31 "2019-11-21T15:21:14Z")
> [@Patch](#): > > So Harriet Tubman fighting a giant spider in the third act is out? ☹ Came here in hopes someone mentioned this. The pressure finally worked, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Trancephalic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trancephalic/32/380_2.png) [@Trancephalic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trancephalic)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/32 "2019-11-21T15:47:10Z")
[Most impressive… if a little ungainly.](https://youtu.be/NHRtlXDOqOU) ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/33 "2019-11-21T16:12:37Z")
> [@Patch](#): > > So Harriet Tubman fighting a giant spider in the third act is out? ☹ No, it’s polar bears now. ---
**Author:** ![Wrenching\_Spanners](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecb155/32.png) [@Wrenching\_Spanners](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wrenching_Spanners)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/34 "2019-11-21T16:26:39Z")
> [@Patch](#): > > So Harriet Tubman fighting a giant spider in the third act is out? ☹ Harriet Tubman: Demon Slayer Link is to a sales site: [https://www.comixology.com/Harriet-Tubman-Demon-Slayer-1/digital-comic/513324](https://www.comixology.com/Harriet-Tubman-Demon-Slayer-1/digital-comic/513324) ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/35 "2019-11-21T16:30:29Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > It doesn’t matter; you can’t really see the trains because they’re underground. Or, as it was known at the time, the Tubway. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/36 "2019-11-21T18:38:21Z")
> [@DerNils](#): > > Hey, he was just a dude playing a dude playing a dude. On the other hand, Linda Hunt won an Oscar for playing a man in _ **The Year of Living Dangerously** _. An actor is an actor. He or she shouldn’t \*automatically \*be excluded from any role because of race or gender. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/37 "2019-11-21T19:03:17Z")
I’m waiting for _Muppet Harriet Tubman_, with Miss Piggy in the title role. ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/38 "2019-11-21T19:19:28Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > An actor is an actor. He or she shouldn’t \*automatically \*be excluded from any role because of race or gender. Harriet Tubman’s life and historical narrative intrinsically revolves around her race and experiences as a black woman enslaved during 19th century USA. If one is going to do a movie about her and cast a white actor out of an idea of open casting, then it rightly follows that the film makers should do so with the ENTIRE CAST. Justly, every single role should be open in this way. It’d result in an interesting retelling (that’s for sure) and it wouldn’t remove African-Americans from participating in retelling the story of one of America’s most famous black rights’ revolutionary. Altogether it’d be too much effort for a major film production company to try to pull off sensitively though. Such ideas are best left for indie film companies or theater. ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/39 "2019-11-21T21:51:22Z")
[According to The Old Jewish Man](https://tv.getyarn.io/yarn-clip/100e5f78-4588-41c3-8fe5-b8b14315c573) in the Simpsons, producers weren’t as good back then as they are today. As proof - a few modern examples - [A](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4nzbC5vYLY); [B](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTi0OVh896A); [C](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyTuMdJsoy8) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2019, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710/40 "2019-11-21T22:29:02Z")
> [@orcenio](#): > > If one is going to do a movie about her and cast a white actor out of an idea of open casting, then it rightly follows that the film makers should do so with the ENTIRE CAST. Justly, every single role should be open in this way. That’s right. No actor should be excluded from a role \*solely \*on the grounds of gender or race, provided he or she is capable of playing it convincingly. This does not imply Julia Roberts is the ideal candidate for the role. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/julia-roberts-was-first-choice-to-play-black-abolitionist-harriet-tubman/843710.md?page=3)