Don Cheadle Losing Roles Because of his Role in Darfur

By: Tonya Woods

Don Cheadle doesn’t just play parts in movies, he commands the role.  A veteran Hollywood actor, Cheadle has proven he can hold his own with the likes of Denzel Washington and Will Smith.  But according to Variety.com, the talented actor says since he became a spokesperson on Darfur, he hasn’t seen as many comedic roles come his way.

Cheadle feels a good actor should be able to do it all: be funny on camera and still tackle adult issues off screen.  Over the years the roles Cheadle has played run the gamut from a trigger happy gangster in “Devil in a Blue Dress” to his show stopping portrayal as hotel manager turned Paul Rusesabagina, in “Hotel Rwanda”.  He recently delivered a comedic yet uplifting portrayal of Washington’s legendary disc jockey, Ralph “Petey” Green, Jr. in “Talk to Me”. 

According to EW.com, Cheadle says he would prefer that people not take him so seriously going forward.

“I heard somebody say they were in a room and [someone else] said, 'This script is kind of silly — we wouldn't want to give this to Don Cheadle,''' said the Oscar nominee. '''We don't want to embarrass him.''

To that Cheadle quickly retorts: ''What are you talking about? I played Buck Swope (the porn star from the 1997 movie “Boogie Nights”). I'll tell you if I'm silly enough.''