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Cuban-American actor Faizon Love has filed a lawsuit against Hollywood studio Universal, claiming he was cut from the 2009 Couples Retreat comedy poster because he was black.
In a Los Angeles court case reported by Deadline, Love said that he and fellow actor Kali Hawk – the film’s only main black actors – had been pulled from international editions of the poster (that is, – say that used for promotion outside the US). Love said that while Universal had “no problem with portraying black actors” in the film, “when it came to bringing the film to international audiences, Universal Studios chose to separate the black and white actors from the film. movie”. The file also stated: “Mr. Love and her black co-star, Kali Hawk, were completely kicked out of the film’s main international publicity, while the other “couples” reveled in the publicity and cheers of international box office success.
Couples Retreat includes four couples visiting a therapy center, as well as stars Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau, and Kristin Davis. Love and Hawk appear in the background of the promotional poster, but have been removed from the poster used to promote the film in the UK.
Love says that after media reported his and Hawks’ elimination, he received an apology from then-Universal President Adam Fogelson, as well as Scott Stuber, one of the film’s producers, and that the poster would be destroyed. Love also said that Vaughn, the film’s lead actor, had also persuaded him not to make a fuss because it wouldn’t be “good for his career.” However, Love accuses Universal of “willful discrimination” and “systematic bigotry,” and says that in July 2020 he found out the poster had not been taken down.
Hollywood has consistently been accused of discrimination in its production of posters and promotional material, including complaints about international versions of the 12 Years a Slave posters, which starred Brad Pitt and Michael Fassbender in the film’s lead role Chiwetel Ejiofor, and a Chinese poster for Star Wars: The Force Awakens that played down the role of star John Boyega.
The Guardian has reached out to Universal for comment.
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