Rita Moreno Defends Lin-Manuel Miranda Amid In The Heights Colorism Controversy: They’re ‘Attacking the Wrong Person’
Rita Moreno defended Lin-Manuel Miranda in the wake of the controversy surrounding In The Heights, which has been criticized for failing to represent Washington Heights’ Afro-Latinx population.
During an appearance on Tuesday’s Late Show, Moreno said the criticism surrounding the film – produced by Miranda and based on his hit Broadway musical – “really upsets me.”
“It’s like you can never do right it seems,” the legendary stage and screen actress told host Stephen Colbert. “This is the man who literally has brought Latino-ness and Puerto Rican-ness to America. I couldn’t do it. I mean, I would love to say I did, but I couldn’t. Lin-Manuel has done that, really single-handedly, and I’m thrilled to pieces, and I’m proud that he produced my documentary.”
When Colbert asked whether she understands “where people’s concerns come from” and whether she thinks the criticism against Miranda specifically is “misplaced,” Moreno responded, “Well, I’m simply saying, can’t you just wait a while and leave it alone? There’s a lot of people who are Puerto Rican who are also from Guatemala who are dark and who are also fair.”
She continued, “We are all colors in Puerto Rico. This is how it is. It would be so nice if they hadn’t come up with that and left it alone, just for now. They’re really attacking the wrong person.”
Miranda took to social media on Monday to respond to the controversy, acknowledging that his film “fell short” of adequately representing “a mosaic” of Washington Heights’ population.
He added, “I can hear the hurt and frustration over colorism, of feeling unseen in the feedback. I hear that without sufficient dark-skinned Afro-Latino representation, the work feels extractive of the community we wanted so much to represent with pride and joy.”
The Tony-winning Broadway star continued, “I’m truly sorry. I’m learning from the feedback, I thank you for raising it, and I’m listening. I’m trying to hold space for both the incredible pride in the movie we made and be accountable for our shortcomings. Thanks for your honest feedback. I promise to do better in my future projects, and I’m dedicated to the learning and evolving we all have to do to make sure we are honoring our diverse and vibrant community.”
