Hollywood Pledges To Back John Boyega After Black Lives Matter Protests

"Look, I don't know if I'm going to have a career after this... but fuck that," bellowed John Boyega to thousands in Hyde Park, London earlier this week. As the U.S. entered its eighth day of protests, the Star Wars actor made a passionate anti-racism speech to those marching in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Speaking from the heart, Boyega's words reverberated across the world. "Black lives have always mattered, we have always been important ..." he said through tears, also addressing the need to take care of Black women, too. While Boyega feared his vocal support could ruin his career, Hollywood has pledged to back John Boyega after Black Lives Matter protests.

Jordan Peele, director of Get Out, Us and BlacKkKlansman, was the first to publicly extend support to the British-Nigerian actor. "We got you, John," tweeted Peele, commanding over a 1.4 million likes. And frankly, Boyega starring in a haunting Peele production needs to happen. We're ready and already terrified.

Also backing Boyega is Harry Potter author JK Rowling who tweeted: "Happy to work with you any time, John." Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker said he'd "crawl through a barrel of broken glass to have John Boyega even so much as *glance* at one of my scripts."

Bosses at Star Wars have publicly supported Boyega, too. The franchise shared a picture of the actor to both Instagram and Twitter alongside the caption "We stand with you and support you, John Boyega."

In another image, they shared that a statement saying "Lucasfilm stands with John Boyega and his message...The evil that is racism must stop... John Boyega, you are our hero."

And, thankfully, the Hollywood support keeps on coming; from film maker Matthew A Cherry, who won an Oscar this year for animated short film Hair Love, to actor and director Olivia Wilde, who tweeted: her support, too. "I would be honoured to work with John Boyega and can only hope to have the chance. We've got your back, John. Don't hold back."

With so much public encouragement, there's hope the starring role offers come flooding in for Boyega in future. As Janelle Okodo, senior fashion writer at Vogue, shared this week: "I demand a @JohnBoyega romantic film. DEMAND. Rom-com, rom-drama, rom-sci fi, rom-insert other genre here. Something happy with lots of kissing." I concur, a rom-com starring Boyega is something the world wants and needs.

The visceral support for Boyega, his message and his career, couldn't be more welcome. For those who have chosen to amplify their voice against racism in recent times, it's comforting to know Boyega may not be penalised for speaking out about racism and what he believes to be right.

As for the Hollywood directors, writers and execs yet to bolster support for the actor, as I tweeted earlier this week, "if Boyega is in it, we'll definitely be watching."