Nathalie Emmanuel doesn't think the British acting industry has "embraced" people of colour.
Nathalie Emmanuel
The 'F9: The Fast Saga' actress admitted she was forced to look for work in the US because there were so few opportunities for her in her native UK.
She told Essence magazine: “The British industry hasn’t always embraced us.
"So many Black mixed people like myself have come out to America because the opportunities just weren’t here for us. What’s happened is a lot of talent has been lost to the States.”
The 32-year-old actress admitted it was a "risk" for her to leave the UK but she's "really, really proud" that she's managed to find success.
She added: “I kind of just took a risk like I guess I’m going to try and I’m really really proud of that and the fact that the universe has decided Nathalie, this is going to happen. It’s surreal. I pinch myself regularly."
The former 'Game of Thrones' star is proud to be a role model for young girls.
She said: "It’s always really heartwarming when someone comes up to me and they say my daughter hated her hair, she hated her skin, she hated these things about herself and she saw you and now she loves herself.
“It literally makes me want to cry because I was that little girl so the fact that I can be that for someone else is lovely.”
Meanwhile, Nathalie recently admitted she's clashed with directors who assumed she was "open to do anything" because she'd stripped in 'Game Of Thrones'.
She said: "When I did 'Game Of Thrones' I agreed to certain nude scenes or nudity within the show. The perception from other projects, when the role required nudity, was that I was just open to do anything because I did it on that one show. What people didn’t realise is I agreed terms for that project, and that doesn’t necessarily apply to all projects.
"I’ve had people challenge me and be like, 'But this part requires that', and I said, 'I don’t feel comfortable doing that level of nudity. I will do this amount or I can do this, which I think is necessary for the part.'"
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