For a movie that takes an actress’ career to the next level, one wouldn’t expect a clapback from the actress after 7 years from its release date. But the Oscar winning actress Viola Davis has made her point clear that she regrets starring in the film, ‘The Help’ which fetched her an Academy Award nomination for the first time in the Best Lead Actress category.
Viola disclosed to The New York Times, whiles answering reader’s questions in a story, “I just felt that at the end of the day that it wasn’t the voice of the maids that were heard. I know Aibileen. I know Minny. They’re my grandma. They’re my mom, “said Davis. “And I know that if you do a movie where the whole premise is, I want to know what it feels like to work for white people and to bring up children in 1963, I want to hear how you really feel about it. I never heard that in the course of the movie.”
Viola made it clear in her interview that her regrets with the movie has nothing to do with the cast nor crew, but solely on the message of the film. “The friendships that I formed are ones that I’m going to have for the rest of my life,” she said. “I had a great experience with these other actresses, who are extraordinary human beings.”
The Help tells the story of an aspiring author (Emma Stone) during the civil rights movement who decides to write a book from the point of view of African-American maids (Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis) that work for white families. The story is set in Mississippi in the 1960s.
The film was nominated for a number of awards, including best picture at the 84th Academy Awards. Davis was also nominated in the best actress category, while her co-stars Spencer and Chastain were both included in the best supporting actress category. Spencer won her first Oscar with the film.
