The estate of Nina Simone has slapped down Zoe Saldana, the star of a controversial new biopic about the late soul icon, in an excoriating Twitter post.
The release on Thursday of a new trailer and poster for Nina has reignited debate over whether producers were right to cast Saldana, a US woman of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent, given the actor required dark makeup and a prosthetic nose to resemble her subject. A number of Twitter users accused the Star Trek actor of performing in “blackface”, and now the carriers of Simone’s flame have weighed in to condemn Cynthia Mort’s film.
In response to a post from Saldana quoting Simone, @NinaSimoneMusic wrote: “@zoesaldana Cool story but please take Nina’s name out your mouth. For the rest of your life.”
.@zoesaldana Cool story but please take Nina's name out your mouth. For the rest of your life.
— Nina Simone (@NinaSimoneMusic) March 3, 2016
It is not clear who controls the Twitter account @NinaSimoneMusic, but the singer’s daughter, Simone Kelly, has previously described Saldana’s casting as “appearance-wise ... not the best choice”. In 2012 she told Ebony she enjoyed Saldana’s films, but felt actors such as Kimberly Elise or Viola Davis would be better options.
“Both of the actresses that I’ve mentioned are women of colour, are women with beautiful, luscious lips and wide noses, and who know their craft,” said Kelly. “I also have no problem introducing someone we’ve never heard of before who can play my mother.”
Saldana has repeatedly defended her role as Simone, telling Allure in 2013: “It doesn’t matter how much backlash I will get for it. I will honour and respect my black community because that’s who I am.”
However, the release of Nina now appears beset by negative publicity. The film was originally set to debut in 2015, but a 22 April US release date has now been set, with the film opening on the same day in cinemas and via video on demand.
