Meagan Good said that, while she has enjoyed some perks of being pretty and famous, she also said it has cost her multiple meaty roles in the past.
Good visited the “Tea Time” podcast of fellow childhood star, Raven-Symoné, and her wife, Miranda Maday, when the two hosts broached the topic of “pretty privilege” and whether it is actually an advantage or hindrance in Hollywood.
Maday began by asking Good if she considers herself a sex symbol.
“Sometimes I feel like a sex symbol, sometimes I feel like a complete nerd,” she explained.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked into something and I had an audition and they were like, ‘She was great, but we just don’t realistically believe her as this character because she’s, you know, a pretty girl,’” Good said.
“I’m like, ‘That’s doing the character a disservice because that means you’re saying that she’s just only about the look,’ ” Good continued.
The Divorce in the Black star said there have been times when the male lead has already been cast by producers, and she won’t get hired because they don’t believe the male actor possesses the swag and savvy to date Good.
“We’ve already hired the lead guy, and we don’t buy that he could get her,” Meagan recalls producers saying to her.
Oscar-winning actor Halle Berry has lamented about being turned down for juicy roles because producers and directors thought she was too attractive back in the 1990s. Fellow winner Charlize Theron told GQ that she shares similar experiences.
“Jobs with real gravitas go to people that are physically right for them, and that’s the end of the story,” Theron said. “How many roles are out there for the gorgeous, f—–g, gown-wearing eight-foot model? When meaty roles come through, I’ve been in the room and pretty people get turned away first.”
For her part, Good said she wants to use her platform to make the world just a little better than when she entered it.
“I’ve always known that I want to be an actress and I want to have incredible opportunities. I want to make things that are just good for my quality of life that hopefully inspire people and make people feel good,” Good tells Symoné and Maday. “But I know more than that, I want to be a good person. I want to use that platform to put good things into the world. I want to be an advocate for women. I want to help younger women to not have to work as hard as we did, you know? The same that those that came before us have”
