TV

Colman Domingo says Boardwalk Empire rejected him for a role because he wasn't light-skinned

Domingo recalled that he almost quit the industry then and told his agent, "I can’t take it anymore, I think this is going to kill me."

By

Sydney Bucksbaum

Published on December 27, 2023 06:05PM EST

Between Rustin (currently streaming on Netflix) and The Color Purple (in theaters now), Colman Domingo seems to be onscreen everywhere, so much so that it's hard to imagine him struggling to get cast in projects as recent as a few years ago. But in a new interview with the New York Times, the actor reveals that he almost quit the industry after Boardwalk Empire rejected him for a role because he wasn't light-skinned enough.

Domingo opened up to the outlet about how he struggled to break into TV and film after his Tony-nominated performance in 2011 on Broadway in The Scottsboro Boys, and it all culminated in a week in 2014 where he claims he auditioned for eight projects including Boardwalk Empire. He was reading for a role as the maître d’ at a Black-owned nightclub in HBO's period drama about the prohibition era, and he remembered wearing a tuxedo, singing, and tap dancing for the audition.

But Domingo remembers his agent calling him after the audition claiming that casting loved him but they decided to pass on him due to concerns of "historical accuracy." Domingo says the show's head researcher told producers that maître d’s in Black-owned nightclubs during that time were typically Black men who were lighter-skinned than Domingo, which is why he lost out on the role.

"That’s when I lost my mind," Domingo said, remembering how he was almost driven to quit acting as a whole due to that moment. He recalls telling his agent, "I can’t take it anymore, I think this is going to kill me," and told his husband he was considering quitting the industry.

HBO reps did not immediately respond to EW's request for comment.

Now, after finally breaking into onscreen work with AMC's Fear the Walking Dead in 2015 and movies including If Beale Street Could Talk, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and Zola, he doesn't audition for roles at all anymore. "I became an actor that was 'offer-only' probably sooner than the industry thought I should have," he said. "But I decided I have a body of work. You can go and look at it, you can ask other directors about me, and you can make me the offer or not."

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