Zoë Kravitz has offered a candid look into the intense “competitiveness” and limited opportunities she feels come with being a Black woman in Hollywood, as well as reflecting on the element of nepotism in her own career, per film-news.co.uk.
In an open conversation with fellow actress Naomi Ackie for ELLE UK, the Big Little Lies star discussed the persistent challenges faced by women of colour in the entertainment industry.
“That’s the thing too—for women of colour and anyone who’s not traditionally a leading woman,” Kravitz explained. “I played best friends for a long time and there is that feeling of, ‘I should just be grateful to be here,’ which creeps into the decisions you make.”
The Blink Twice director went on to highlight the scarcity of roles available to Black women. “There’s a competitive element that comes in too, because there’s not enough room for all of us, which is crazy,” she shared.
Kravitz also touched on the privilege she has benefited from as the daughter of music icon Lenny Kravitz and actress Lisa Bonet.
“And then, for me, it’s the nepotism of it all, which makes me feel like, ‘Do I deserve to be here?'” she told Ackie. “As women in general, we have to be thankful and apologise. I even found that with directing—people really expect you to flirt with them.”
Kravitz noted that these pressures extend beyond Hollywood: “There are just so many elements of what’s expected of women—in all industries, probably.”
Ackie, who starred in Kravitz’s feature directorial debut, Blink Twice, last year, echoed the sentiment of having to work harder. She noted that growing up, her parents instilled the belief that she would have to “work twice as hard and get half as much” because there was “no space for mistakes.”
“I saw some of my friends who aren’t Black or a person of colour make mistakes or be a bit reckless in a way that I cannot afford to do,” Ackie continued. “I have one shot at this.”
