Actor John Leguizamo used Sunday’s Emmy Awards on ABC to scold Hollywood for marginalizing Latinos for decades and casting non-Latino white actors in Latino roles.
He also praised controversial DEI initiatives and touched on the coming presidential election, claiming Latinos will decide the outcome in November.
John Leguizamo didn’t hold back when he took the stage of the Peacock Theatre in downtown Los Angeles during Sunday’s live broadcast.
“For years, I didn’t complain about the limited roles my people were offered — the spicy sex pot, the Latin lover, the maid, the gang banger. Turns out, not complaining doesn’t change anything,” he said, eliciting applause from the celebrity audience.
He even called out his Carlito’s Way co-star Al Pacino for playing Cuban gangster Tony Montana in Scarface and dragged the late Natalie Wood for playing a Puerto Rican in West Side Story.
Leguizamo also used the Emmys to praise DEI — diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives that have pushed aside merit and replaced it with Communist concepts including “equity,” which is the equality of outcome.
The actor expressed pride of being “one of Hollywood’s DEI hires.”
“The D is for diligence, the E is for excellence, the I is for imagination. Everyone in this room tonight has dedicated their lives to diligence, excellence and imagination,” he said.
On the red carpet earlier in the evening, Leguizamo urged politicians including Kamala Harris to actively court the Latino vote. “We’re going to decide who the next president is,” he told the AP.
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