Daniel Kaluuya finds fame “disorienting.”
The 30-year-old actor has quickly become one of the most sought-after stars in Hollywood, following his performances in Get Out and Black Panther, but Kaluuya is still coming to terms with his own success and his newfound status.
He explained to the Sunday Times newspaper: “It’s not what I got into this for — to wear suits or shake hands. It’s disorienting. But it’s more disorienting because of where I come from.
“After Get Out, I finished Black Panther and went back to the estate [in north London where he grew up]. Then I was nominated. Kaboom! Who am I? I had to understand that what had happened was going to be permanent.”
Kaluuya learned a “truckload” from his first awards season.
He said: “It’s hard to observe people if people are looking at you. But I realized rich people can be really desperate. I didn’t know that. I thought that when you’re rich, you’re good.”
Despite being from London, Kaluuya has mostly appeared in American movies over recent years.
And the actor claims racism is partially responsible for the trend.
He explained: “I was going for a lot of stuff [in England]. But I wasn’t getting roles because of the color of my skin. It wasn’t fair.
“It was a trap. For example, I went up for this show. It was 10 rounds of auditions. There was me and a White guy for the lead. It was about aliens. And I realized as I was going to one audition that the other guy had been given an acting coach. They didn’t love me like they loved him.
“And this is no joke. This is my life. This is a job. In any other profession, that would be weird, but it was accepted in mine. It happened a few times, and I went, ‘Nah. I’m not an idiot.'”
