Former 'Super Mario Bros' actor John Leguizamo opens up about 'diversity' in Hollywood

The 1993 Super Mario Bros actor John Leguizamo John Leguizamo does not think Hollywood has changed much. The Latino actor believes his community is still not well represented in the industry.

Speaking to Indiewire, the actor said:

“It’s changed a little bit, not enough. I mean, come on: Last year it was maybe two percent of the leads. This year it’s three percent. That’s still not OK. We’re 20 percent of the population, so we should be 20 percent of the leads.”

The original Super Mario Bros actor said the word diversity gets thrown around a lot in Hollywood, but his community is still ‘excluded’.

“It’s a great buzzword, but to what effect? I’m glad that everybody else is getting great representation, but we’re still excluded. I don’t like to compare, but either we’re not complaining enough or not being loud enough to demand what we deserve. Some of us may not even know we’re excluded. Executives are not going to do anything unless somebody calls them on it.”

Moreover, the actor said his ideas for pieces keep getting rejected for various reasons but he knows that it’s just racism.

“I pitch a lot of historic pieces that are incredible. I got all this historical information from the 1700s, or the 1800s, and I’m told, “Oh, we’re not doing period stuff,” “We’re not doing feel-good movies.” It’s Hollywood racism masked as Hollywood wisdom.”

John Leguizamo became well-known for his role as Luigi in the 1993 film Super Mario Bros. He also gained attention for his performance as Benny Blanco in the crime drama Carlito's Way (1993). Later on, he starred in the movie To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995), which earned him a nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Globe Awards.