Will Smith touches on the reason why he avoids films on slavery

Will Smith highlights the actual reason he prefers to avoid films with themes of slavery.

The actor shared his personal thoughts on the matter during a candid chat with GQ Magazine.

There he was even quoted saying, “I’ve always avoided making films about slavery.” Mainly because “I wanted to be a superhero.”

“So I wanted to depict black excellence alongside my white counterparts. I wanted to play roles that you would give to Tom Cruise.”

“And the first time I considered it was ‘Django [Unchained],’ but I didn’t want to make a slavery film about vengeance.”

Smith turned down a chance in the 2012 Quentin Tarantino cult film because it detailed the life and experience of a former slave turned-bounty hunter.

“It was about the creative direction of the story. To me, it’s as perfect a story as you could ever want: a guy that learns how to kill to retrieve his wife that has been taken as a slave.”

“That idea is perfect. And it was just that Quentin and I couldn’t see [eye to eye]. I wanted to make the greatest love story that African-Americans had ever seen.”

While it is true that he “wanted to make that movie so badly,” he “felt the only way was, it had to be a love story, not a vengeance story. I don’t believe in violence as the reaction to violence.”

But that is not to say Smith wants to turn down the theme entirely. His intention is to create a slave’s story “about love and the power of black love.”

“And that was something that I could rock with. We were going to make a story about how black love makes us invincible.”