With “Malcolm & Marie” finally available for everyone on Netflix, there is a large number of people watching the highly-anticipated awards contender. And with that, there are new people watching the film and having questions about the way the film came together and potentially problematic issues with the story. Now, writer-director Sam Levinson aims to explain some of those issues and why they don’t really seem applicable to “Malcolm & Marie.”
Even before the film was released, there were questions about the large age gap between the two stars of the film, Zendaya and John David Washington. The film features both actors playing lovers that are spending a night arguing. But with Zendaya only 24 and Washington 36, the age difference was a concern for those who haven’t seen the film.
Speaking to The Independent, Levinson tackled the issue of the age gap and explained that Hollywood does have a problem with casting love interests with large differences in age. However, for this film, the criticism doesn’t necessarily apply.
“I’m just not sure the criticism is applicable to this particular project because [the age difference] is part of its DNA,” said Levinson.
As Levinson alludes to, “Malcolm & Marie” is a film about two people fighting. And over the course of the film, you find out more and more information about the two characters and their issues with each other. The age difference is a vital part of that disagreement and something that does come into play multiple times in the argument. So, though there is an age gap, it’s something that is truly woven into the story.
As for the other major criticism, or potential issue with the film, concerning the fact that Sam Levinson is a white man and the two main characters are both Black, the filmmaker explained to Esquire that he understands that could have been problematic, but this film was such a collaborative effort, the race issues aren’t something he’s concerned by.
“No, because I have faith in the collaborative process and in my partners that if I write something that doesn’t feel true, that JD or Z don’t respond to or feel to be honest, that they are going to say something and we’ll work it out,” the filmmaker explained. “I didn’t have anxiety in that sense because I have too much respect for the collaborative nature of filmmaking.”
In the film, John David Washington’s Malcolm is a filmmaker that spends a large portion of the beginning of the film talking about being a Black filmmaker. And it’s clear that the issues that could arise from a white writer-director discussing the issues facing Black filmmakers are things that Levinson understood could be a problem And in multiple interviews throughout the publicity tour, including our very own interview on The Playlist Podcast, Levinson goes to great lengths to talk about the collaboration with Zendaya and Washington and how they helped ensure he wasn’t overstepping.
“Malcolm & Marie” is available now on Netflix.