David Oyelowo felt a calling to play Martin Luther King – but Selma's original director rejected him

David Oyelowo felt a calling to play Martin Luther King – but Selma's original director rejected him

This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.From Martin Luther King to Coriolanus and gunslinger Bass Reeves, 49-year-old Brit David Oyelowo has become synonymous with some pretty tough dramatic parts on stage and screen.So, his latest role, in Apple TV+’s quirky comedy drama Government Cheese, marks a significant gear change. He plays Hampton Chambers, a family man in the late 1960s, who’s done time in prison for forging cheques but is …

David Oyelowo On Playing The Surreal And Real Elements Of 'Government Cheese' - Immersive Media

It was Paul Hunter's existence, and there was an elevated element of surrealism to everything. It's a quirky family, but it's all based on Paul's upbringing as a young guy. Growing up in the San Fernando Valley in the sixties and seventies, every time we had a scene that I just thought was a little bit outlandish, Paul would have some anecdote that rooted it in the truth of what happened with him, which is how I approached playing a version of hi