Naomie Harris has paid a glowing tribute to Winnie Mandela, the wife of Nelson Mandela who she portrayed in the 2013 biopic “Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom,” who sadly passed away at the age of 81 at the start of the month.
I recently had the opportunity to talk to Harris about her starring turn in “Rampage” opposite Dwayne Johnson, during which time I asked her about the death of Winnie Mandela, which provoked her to reflect on the divisive political figure.
“Winnie’s contribution to South Africa and the world is going to do down in history,” Harris declared. “Often she has been overlooked for her contributions because she is a controversial character. I think that is unfortunate.”
“She clearly did have a massive impact on the evolution of South Africa and she should be remembered for her contribution. Despite the controversy that surrounds her. When you are in South Africa, where we shot the ‘Long Walk To Freedom,’ there is so much love and admiration for her.”
“She is loved as Mama Winnie wherever she goes. She is respected so much. It is only outside of South Africa where she is deemed more controversial. She deserved more love, because she really did make a huge contribution.”
While Naomie Harris did an impressive job as Winnie Mandela opposite Idris Elba in the 2013 biopic, the film failed to find an audience. It ultimately grossed just $27.3 million from its $35 million budget, and only received a score of 61% on Rotten Tomatoes.
While admirable, that percentage wasn’t enough to make “Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom” essential viewing. That’s an issue that Rampage probably isn’t going to have.
Because while it currently has a score of just 52% on Rotten Tomatoes the bombastic spectacle of the creature feature means it is on course to gross $35-40 million over its opening weekend alone, and it should do enough worldwide to make more than its $120 million budget.
You can check out the trailer for “Rampage” below to see why so many people are destined to flock to the film.
