Last September, Awkwafina addressed the criticism over her past use of a “Blaccent” onscreen, in an on-camera Reuters interview.
“You know, I’m open to the conversation,” she said. “I think it really is something that I think is a little bit multi-faceted and layered.”
In 2017, amid the backlash, Awkwafina also drew controversy for saying in a VICE interview, “I’ve walked out of auditions where the casting director all of a sudden changed her mind and asked for accents. I refuse to do accents.”
Amid the controversy, Awkwafina has also been praised for her efforts to promote diversity in Hollywood. BD Wong, who plays her dad on her show Nora from Queens, praised the star in a 2020 People interview, saying she has ”hired a lot of women and a lot of people of color.”
In 2019, Awkwafina told The Hollywood Reporter, ”I think that there’s a progressive shift in Hollywood right now. People’s diversity is not a trend. Diversity is something that’s just here to stay. The projects that I have been in were very reflective of that and I’m very lucky to have been on those sets.”