Morgan Freeman

One the most popular black male actor of the last century is Morgan Freeman. This critically acclaimed Hollywood actor is known for the movie roles in “The Shawshank Redemption,” “Driving Miss Daisy,” “Million Dollar Baby,” “Glory” and “The Dark Knight.” When examine black masculinity, most look how African American media male are representation in the media. For me, Freeman is one most recognize black actor I grew up watching.  Hollywood there is usually a narrative in which Black characters with mystical powers that exist only to teach the White protagonist how to be a better person. Many of Morgan Freeman roles are defined as the Magical Negro trope.  The Power of Black Magic: The Magical Negro and White Salvation in Filmexplain by Cerise L. Glenn, Landra J. Cunningham describes that “K. Anthony Appiah (1993), defined the magical Negro as ‘the noble, good-hearted black man or woman’ whose good sense pulls the White character through a crisis.” The “magical negro” originates for the stereotypes such as the Sambo and Uncle Tom. The Character Sambo how whites perceived Blacks as depiction of obedient, servile, and docile slave it way of dehumanized black for entertainment. Matthew W. Hughey, in the article Cinethetic Racism: White Redemption and Black Stereotypes in “Magical Negro” Filmsdescribes that “‘Magical negro’ films thus function to marginalize black agency, empower normalized and hegemonic forms of whiteness, and glorify powerful black characters in so long as they are placed in racially subservient positions.” Morgan Freeman   play the Magical Negro character with in films such as Driving Miss Daisy, Shawshank, and Million Dollar Baby. Morgan embodies the Magical Negrowith mystical powers in the films of Bruce Almighty and Evan Almighty, were he has supernatural power since he plays the character of God. The Magical Negro trope even comes out in the film Invictus in which Freeman plays Nelson Mandela. In this film, Matt Damon character Francois Pienaar the White South African rugby captain over shadows Freeman’s character. Contemporary representations of Black males are socially constructed to comply with the stereotype of the dominant hegemonic society. The Magical Negro undermining black ability to define black masculinity.