David Oyelowo on 'Bass Reeves': 'A Story That Must Be Told'
David Oyelowo on 'Bass Reeves': 'A Story That Must Be Told'
WATCH: Paramount+ limited series' star and EP on the iconic lawman with Katey Rich for The Ankler x Backstage FYC event
You can watch the whole conversation with David Oyelowo at AnklerEnjoy, home for post-Ankler Events content, as well as view photos.
When David Oyelowo first heard the story of U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves, who made more than 3,000 arrests between 1875 and 1907, “I naively thought, oh, I'll show them. This is a story that must be told.”
The reality, as so many people who have pitched around Hollywood know, was very different. It took nearly a decade for Lawmen: Bass Reeves, the limited series that premiered last fall on Paramount+, to become a reality. Oyelowo’s tireless efforts are what made it happen, but he also credits the success of the Yellowstone universe shepherded by Taylor Sheridan, an executive producer on Bass Reeves, as well as Hollywood’s renewed focus on telling Black stories following the murder of George Floyd.
“It just became harder and harder not to look at Bass Reeves and go, this is a no-brainer, guys,” said Oyelowo during the latest The Ankler x Backstage Screening Series. “Thankfully I was the guy who had been pushing it up the hill at the right moment.”
Though Bass Reeves is an undeniable American hero, his story was never included in textbooks until recently; Oyelowo said with pride that after the show premiered, California added Reeves’ story to the state curriculum. Having played Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 2014’s Selma, Oyelowo knows a thing or two about playing an icon as a real person — and brought that experience to playing Reeves in all his human complexity.
“We all go to the movies, we see TV shows to see ourselves reflected back to us.” said Oyelowo, who has been nominated for a Golden Globe, SAG and Critics Choice award for his portrayal of Reeves. “Drama is conflict, therefore you have to have that for the character. The amazing thing about playing Bass Reeves is, boy, does he have a bunch of conflict in relation to what's happening outside of him and inside of him in the country at that time. So, you run towards that.”
Now that Bass Reeves is officially a global hit, becoming 2023’s most-watched series on Paramount+, Oyelowo has been vindicated many times over in his belief that Bass Reeves had a story worth telling. “I didn't say, ‘I told you so’ out loud because I'm too polite,” Oyelowo said. “ But inwardly, I was screaming it.”
Lawmen: Bass Reeves is vying for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, and Oyelowo for Outstanding Lead Actor in the 76th Emmys. Among other categories, the series is also contending for nominations for Outstanding Period Costumes and Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Period or Fantasy Program.
My first trip to Hollywood was epic to say the least. Lawman Bass Reaves, thanks David Oyelowo the story is now told! The battle to get the story told alone seemed to be just as heroic as the story itself, thanks to The Ankler I got to hear it in person after traveling from my Alabama's bible belt. Black man rising up to change history forever, Creek Indians by his side, this part cowboy part Indian dropped a tear when the young Creek Indian lost his life. With my hair standing up, shivers up my spine, so excited to be a part of history that night, my Creek blood is running strong! My hats off to Katey Rich and David Oyelowo, what a story that needed to be told, Thank you for having me "Tales of Tbone" lives on, such a spark for my upcoming book series as my stories are told! Rising up above the silencing white man, Let our history be told!