Chris Rock says Misty Green challenges Hollywood’s positive roles for Black women

Chris Rock says his new film, “Misty Green,” partly pushes back against Hollywood’s tendency to cast Black women as relentlessly positive characters. Speaking Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival’s “In Conversation With…” series, Rock said he wanted the central character, played by Rosalind Eleazar, to be complicated and messy.

Rock wrote, directed and stars in the film. He said he would like to see more compelling roles for Black women, pointing to his friend Tracie Thoms, who plays a casting director in “Misty Green.” Rock said Thoms works constantly but is often cast as a judge or another implausibly positive character, describing the industry as overcompensating.

Thoms said on the red carpet before the film’s premiere Saturday that it was fun to work with Rock, whom she said fosters an environment of discovery and play. For Rock, creator of “Everybody Hates Chris,” allowing a Black woman to make bad decisions was part of what made the story interesting.

The drama follows a struggling actress trying to return to Hollywood and is Rock’s most dramatic project to date. He described Misty as very bad at blackjack — taking another card with 19 already in hand — and then trying to work out how to remain in the casino.

Rock said moving away from the lead role to let a woman carry the story was not necessarily a grand statement, but reflected the characters he finds compelling. He said he finds stories about complicated women more engaging than stories centred on men.

The “Madagascar” actor also reflected on Hollywood’s past treatment of actors, recalling studio budgets with separate pay scales based on race and gender. He said Black women were at the bottom, and that race- and gender-based distinctions still occur in Hollywood, though more covertly.

“Misty Green” also examines Hollywood and a broader American preoccupation with fame, image and money. Rock said people are increasingly concerned with appearances rather than what is actually happening, calling it a culture preoccupied with “angles.” He also criticized the pursuit of money and fame as measures of intelligence, talent and worth.

The film screens at TIFF on Sept. 13 and Sept. 18, and opens in theatres Oct. 9.