Westworld star Thandie Newton has opened up about the lack of roles for black actors in the UK due to the volume of period dramas being produced, saying she doesn't want to play someone who is "being racially abused."
The London-born actress, who is of Zimbabwean and English descent, has spoken about the struggle in finding work in her home country because there are "slim pickings for people of colour."
"I love being here, but I can't work, because I can't do Downton Abbey, can't be in Victoria, can't be in Call The Midwife – well, I could, but I don't want to play someone who's being racially abused," Newton told The Sunday Times Magazine.
"I'm not interested in that; don't want to do it... There just seems to be a desire for stuff about the Royal Family, stuff from the past, which is understandable, but it just makes it slim pickings for people of colour."
Newton will soon appear in BBC One drama Line Of Duty where her character deals with racism and sexism, topics she is glad to tackle on screen.
"Every woman will recognise the frustrations," she said. "In every role, in every job, every line of work, as a mother you just have to be twice as good, and if you're black you have to be twice as good on top of that."
She continued, "She's a senior investigating officer and she's taken five years off to raise her family and she has to claw her way back to where she was.
"It's a very real problem, what is most degrading is the sexual abuse that goes on, whether its verbal or whether its physical; it's very tough on women."
Line of Duty will air on BBC One on Sunday, March 26th at 9pm.
