Danny Boyle reflects on legacy of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’

Danny Boyle is taking time to reflect on Slumdog Millionaire and the impact it has had, both when it was released and how it would be viewed today. 

In a recent interview with The Guardian, the 68-year-old director shared his thoughts about the Oscar-winning film’s legacy and the realities of making such a movie in the present day.

“We wouldn’t be able to make that now,” Boyle said. “And that’s how it should be.”

The filmmaker, who won an Oscar for directing the 2008 hit, spoke candidly about how the cultural landscape has shifted since the movie’s release. 

Written by Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire tells the story of a boy from the Juhu slums of Mumbai who finds himself competing on India’s version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? 

The role was portrayed at various ages by Ayush Mahesh Khedekar, Tanay Hemant Chheda, and Dev Patel.

Boyle acknowledged that it’s important to consider the perspective from which such stories are told. 

“We have to look at the cultural baggage we carry and the mark that we’ve left on the world,” he said. He noted how everything ties back in some way to colonial history. 

When Slumdog Millionaire was being made nearly two decades ago, Boyle recalled that it “felt radical” at the time.

“We made the decision that only a handful of us would go to Mumbai. We’d work with a big Indian crew and try to make a film within the culture. But you’re still an outsider. It’s still a flawed method,” he explained. 

Boyle was honest about the complexities of cultural appropriation, saying, “That kind of cultural appropriation might be sanctioned at certain times. But at other times it cannot be.”

Despite this, Boyle shared that he is still proud of the movie. 

“But you wouldn’t even contemplate doing something like that today. It wouldn’t even get financed,” he admitted. “Even if I was involved, I’d be looking for a young Indian filmmaker to shoot it.”

Slumdog Millionaire became a major box office success and earned 10 Oscar nominations in 2009, taking home eight awards. 

The film, which also starred Freida Pinto, Madhur Mittal, and Anil Kapoor, helped Boyle transition from indie hits like Trainspotting and 28 Days Later to becoming a widely recognized director with both critical and commercial acclaim.