Studio Head Wanted Julia Roberts To Play Harriet Tubman

Should the biopic of American abolitionist, Harriet Tubman, be produced 25 years ago, the possibility is that she would have been whitewashed and Julia Roberts would have played the role.

Tubman was an enslaved woman who escaped from her oppressive white owners to be free and later in her life led 13 missions to rescue other African slaves from their masters. That legendary act made Tubman an iconic figure in the United States history and will be the new face of $20 banknote set to be launched in 2026. 

The aforementioned will no doubt make an excellent movie and the film's screenwriter and producer Gregory Allen Howard revealed that one studio head described the script as "fantastic" but suggested that a white character play the role because no one would have noticed considering the time in history. 

"When someone pointed out that Roberts couldn't be Harriet, the studio head said, 'It was so long ago. No one is going to know the difference,'" Allen revealed. 

According to him, the need to star a black character began to gain strength when "12 Years A Slave" was released considering its performance at the box office and that of Black Panther made it obvious that it will best to cast a black woman and that led Cynthia Erivo being contacted for the role. Meanwhile, Viola Davis had first been considered.