With only days to go until Jeff Nichols’ romantic drama, “Loving”, hits theatres, the film’s stars Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton are reflecting on the movie’s relevance as America’s racially-charged climate continues to heat up.
“Loving”, which opens in theatres on November 4, tells the real-life tale of lovers Richard and Mildred Loving when miscegenation was deemed illegal.
Taking place in the late 1950s, their story would soon lay the groundwork for a landmark ruling in the U.S. Supreme Court, and years later would continue to resonate in real life and onscreen.
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“There’s an imbalance of behaviour, of provisions, of health care, of general attitude,” Edgerton said, explaining his attraction to the script while speaking with The Hollywood Reporter. “And the thing that really struck me with ‘Loving’ was: You can legislate as much as you like, but you can’t legislate people’s opinions.”
Edgerton added: “It was like going through a time vortex…Jeff created a kind of time machine. But it did strike me how 50 years is really not that long ago. Not for this s*** to be going down.”
Negga, meanwhile, echoed her co-star’s sentiments while highlighting the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement during a time when racism in Hollywood, and around the world, is as apparent as ever. “Unless you’re walking around with an invisibility cloak, [you can’t fail to be aware of racism],” she told THR. “It’s only ever going to change when people have conversations and don’t dismiss the Black Lives Matter movement as something that’s aggressive or unnecessary.”
After receiving a warm welcome at the Cannes Film Festival in May, “Loving” and its stars are already being considered as front-runners in the race for Oscar nominations.
