‘I’m Terribly Sorry:’ Seth Rogen Apologizes for Using Blackface for Movie

Seth Rogen, mea culpa Image by Getty Images

By Jenny Singer August 6, 2018

As if Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg making a movie about children wasn’t risky enough, the buddy-collaborators are now in hot water for using black face on an actor on set.

Rogen has apologized after footage of his upcoming film “Good Boys” showed a stand-in for a black child actor wearing skin-darkening makeup and an afro-imitating wig. IndieWire reports that though the stand-in himself was black, he was put in blackface makeup and a complaint was filed to producers. One DP commented to IndieWire that stand-ins should share coloring with the actors they represent, and that where disparities appear, lighting should be enough to counterbalance them. “I personally would never ask for someone to be made up in a darker tone,” the DP said.

Rogen told IndieWire in a statement:

I should start by saying this shouldn’t have happened, and I’m terribly sorry it did. I won’t give excuses for why it happened. I’ll just say that as soon I was made aware of it, I ensured we put an end to it — and I give my word that on any project my team and I are involved in, we will take every precaution to make sure something similar does not take place again. I’m engaging in conversations to make sure I find the best way to do that. It’s on me to be proactive. Reacting isn’t enough.

What do we think, Schmoozers? In our opinion, this is a solidly great apology. The High Holidays are coming up, so we’re getting in a forgiving mood, which is good because a lot of people have done things to be sorry for this year.

Also “Good Boys” is being directed by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, writers of some of the best episodes of “The Office,” so we are very hopeful that this movie will be gold.

Jenny Singer is the deputy lifestyle editor for the Forward. You can reach her at Singer@forward.com or on Twitter @jeanvaljenny

Jenny Singer is a freelance writer with pieces in Vox, the Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle, Teen Vogue, and more. She was previously a staff writer at Glamour and the Forward, and she’s currently getting an MFA in nonfiction writing at the University of Iowa.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO