Danny Boyle admits he couldn’t make ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ today because of cultural appropriation concerns
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English director Danny Boyle said that he would not direct “Slumdog Millionaire” if it was made today due to “cultural appropriation” and would rather have a “young Indian filmmaker” make it instead.
“We wouldn’t be able to make that now. And that’s how it should be. It’s time to reflect on all that. We have to look at the cultural baggage we carry and the mark that we’ve left on the world… At the time it felt radical,” Boyle told The Guardian.
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Set in India, the movie tells the story of Jamal, a young “slumdog” who’s been selected to appear on the country’s version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”, and hopes to also find his childhood lost love, Latika. Throughout his appearance, events from his tumultuous life are shown in flashback and help him answer the questions.
Released in 2008, “Slumdog Millionaire” was a hit with audiences and critics, grossing nearly $380 million on a $15 million budget and winning eight Oscars, including Best Picture and Director for Boyle.
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However, despite its success, the movie was controversial for appearing to exploit Indian culture and portray stereotypes of India from a western perspective. Some Indian critics enjoyed the movie, but some Indian artists were underwhelmed, claiming it was “saturated with stereotyped images of India,” TIME magazine reported.
Boyle added that while the film was in production over 15 years ago, he was sensitive to the exploitative implications of making the movie as a foreigner then.
“We made the decision that only a handful of us would go to Mumbai. We’d work with a big Indian crew and try to make a film within the culture. But you’re still an outsider. It’s still a flawed method. That kind of cultural appropriation might be sanctioned at certain times,” Boyle told The Guardian.
He went on to say, “But at other times it cannot be. I mean, I’m proud of the film, but you wouldn’t even contemplate doing something like that today. It wouldn’t even get financed. Even if I was involved, I’d be looking for a young Indian filmmaker to shoot it.”
Boyle’s other notable movies include “Trainspotting,” “Steve Jobs,” “127 Hours” and the “28 Days Later” horror series. The latest, “28 Years Later”, was released on Friday.
Boyle nor his representatives immediately responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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