If you recall, rapper Snoop Dogg was not a fan of Will Packer’s Roots remake. Snoop shared his thoughts about it on Instagram, saying, “They’re just gonna keep beating that s–t into our heads as to how they did us, huh?” Well, the producer behind the remake obviously doesn’t agree.
Will Packer, the producer behind the miniseries, told the Tallahassee Democrat, “They’re uncomfortable revisiting the reality of that time. I understand it. But at the same time, I vehemently disagree.”
Will Packer Talks ‘Roots’, Racism in Hollywood and More on ‘ESSENCE Live’
When specifically asked about Snoop’s rant against slave narratives, Packer said, “I think that while I certainly don’t judge Snoop at all because I’m very flawed myself, I just think the irony of having him saying and using the n-word, saying, ‘A real n-word like me wouldn’t watch this,’ I couldn’t help but think there’s a ghost of some horrendous slave owner that is smiling and smirking as he watches this black man say that and call himself that …I think that slave owner probably said, ‘Preach. I agree.’”
Packer added that of all his work, the Roots miniseries has been the most criticized. Still, the producer believes that slave narratives are stories that need to be told no matter how uncomfortable people are about the topic.
“I don’t think we should get too comfortable as a country, as a society or as a race of people. I think this is a story that’s important enough it should be told in repeated ways.”
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