Will Hollywood Tell Nelson Mandela’s Story Without a White Co-Pilot?

Today's his birthday.

By Jamilah King Jul 18, 2013

It’s Nelson Mandela’s 95th birthday. While the ailing anti-Apartheid hero remains hospitalized in South Africa, the subject of his legacy — and how exactly to portray it on film — has been up for discussion. Tambay A. Obenson points out over at Shadow and Act that Mandela’s story is most often told alongside that of a white character, which puts Mandela’s own life in the background: