Sterling K Brown says being part of Black Panther was a “cultural moment” that allowed him to be “part of history” – and he’d jump at the chance to become part of the Marvel world again.
The 48-year-old actor, who’s currently starring in the mind-bending drama Paradise, told Sky News: “I remember reading that script – they don’t give it to you – you have to read it and then turn it back or your hands burn off or something like that…
“I remember thinking, this is a cultural moment. This is so big, not only for black America but for black people across the globe to see themselves front and centre in the largest, most zeitgeisty pop cultural machine in the world right now, the MCU [Marvel Cinematic Universe].
The superhero movie won three Oscars – Marvel’s first ever Academy Awards – including a win for costume design and best production design, the first in both categories for women of colour.
Brown goes on: “I just want to be a part of history. It was history. It was awesome.”
The Missouri-born star’s career trajectory has been impressive, from “living beneath the poverty line” to being nominated for an Oscar, he’s always been single-minded in his pursuit of acting.
He explains: “I didn’t have a hard knock life. We grew up in a house. My mom was a schoolteacher. My dad was a grocery clerk. All our needs were met.
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“But I would tape my basketball shoes up if the sole came apart because that fixed them. And my mom got mad at me one time, she’s like, ‘You know, we can buy you shoes?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, but I fixed them. What’s the big deal?'”
He says making his living through his craft was always his focus, adding, “I know that’s a luxury that’s not afforded to a lot of people. The fact that it’s gone my way, I’m incredibly thankful for.”
A three-time Emmy winner, The People V O J Simpson: American Crime Story saw him gain public attention, followed by a season in The Marvellous Mrs Maisel, an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the multi-award-winning This Is Us.
‘I’ve got good taste’
When his role in American Fiction earned him an Oscar nomination, he insists he didn’t see it coming, saying: “I just knew it was a great story, a great script, and I wanted to be a part of it.”
He goes on: “They’re all sort of game-changers. People will give me credit. I’ll take credit for having good taste, but you never know when lightning is going to strike, right?”
A fatalist, he says: “I leave it in the hands of the universe and just say, ‘If you want me to step here, I’ll step there and whatever happens, happens’.”
Now he’s leading the cast of Disney+ drama Paradise, playing Agent Xavier Collins, a man charged with protecting a second-term president – played by James Marsden – in a serene community of high-net-worth individuals.
Brown admits the role came with obligations: “There is a different level of responsibility when you’re one on the call sheet. I think people do look to you to help set the tone of what the environment is going to be like, and I don’t mind that.”
The brainchild of Dan Fogelman, best known for his work on This Is Us and Only Murders In The Building, Paradise is a murder mystery with something much bigger underneath.
‘Billionaires on camera’
Impossible to elaborate on further without giving away spoilers, it’s enough to say the first episode throws up a twist few will see coming.
Despite various parallels with the current political climate, Fogelman says he came up with the idea over a decade ago, but concedes the timing is “certainly unusual”.
Fogelman tells Sky News: “We’re openly seeing billionaires on camera having a big hand in government. And while money and wealth have always been a factor in things behind the scenes, it’s very out front and centre right now in a way that the show openly discusses [and] things about the environment and climate change.”
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Brown too says the themes are prescient: “The world is unpredictable and a little bit nutty and a lot of people are on edge as to what is next. I don’t know if it’s across the world. I definitely know that it’s in the United States for certain.
“I think the show in a very strange way, is sort of asking the same questions like, ‘All right, we’re in new territory right now. I have no idea what happens next. I’m a little scared about that.'”
He goes on: “People are going to draw all sorts of conclusions and inferences and comparisons. I will leave them to draw whatever they wish because if I was an audience member, I would too.”
The first three episodes of Paradise are available on Disney+ now, with new episodes dropping each Tuesday.
