Viggo Mortensen.Photo: Fabio Mazzarella/Sintesi/SIPA/REX/Shutterstock
Viggo Mortensenis apologizing for using the n-word after a screening of his new filmGreen Book.
The 60-year-old actor was at a Q&A for the potential Oscar contender — which deals with issues of racism and segregation — on Wednesday night in Los Angeles alongside his costar Mahershala Ali.
Mortensen also said he does not “use the word in private or in public.”
“I am very sorry that I did use the full word last night, and will not utter it again,” he said.
Patti Perret/Universal
Mortensen said he took on the role of Lip to bring awareness to racial issues that have divided the United States.
“One of the reasons I accepted the challenge of working on Peter Farrelly’s movieGreen Bookwas to expose ignorance and prejudice in the hope that our movie story might help in some way to change peoples’ views and feelings regarding racial issues,” the actor explained.
“It is a beautiful, profound movie story that I am very proud to be a part of,” he added.
Ali told PEOPLE in a statement, “However well-intentioned or intellectual the conversation may have been, it wasn’t appropriate for Viggo to say the n-word.”
“He had made it clear to me that he’s aware of this, and apologized profusely immediately following the Q&A with Elvis Mitchell,” he said. “Knowing his intention was to express that removing the n-word from your vocabulary doesn’t necessarily disqualify a person as a racist or participating in actions or thoughts that are bigoted, I can accept and embrace his apology.”
An audience member at the screening tweeted about the incident, writing, “Was at a screening for#GreenBook—the movie is amazing, but at the Q&A after Viggo Mortensen just dropped the N Word and the oxygen immediately left the room.#movies.”
Green Bookopens Nov. 16.
source: people.com
