Weeks ago, Tyrese took to social media to express that there were times when he was ashamed of his dark complexion. It isn't a topic that he hasn't spoken about in the past, as the multi-hyphenate entertainer has been candid about the bullying he reportedly endured because of his skin color. The topic of colorism came up once again when he spoke with Leah A. Henry of Leah's Lemonade and stated that he would often lose out on roles to Terrence Howard because his peer was seen as more attractive.
“Throughout my whole childhood, it was not cool to be dark skin in the hood," said the actor. "It was always the light-skinned Black people that seemed to have gotten all the attention and all the love and considered pretty, attractive, or handsome. And since I’ve been in Hollywood we dealt with the same thing."
“I just did a film with Terrence Howard — we’re able to joke about it now — but I was the star of the film, and they had an idea to go with someone else, who I won’t mention, and then I suggested Terrence Howard. And he thanked me for like, a week straight.” He added, "Terrence Howard has no idea how many roles that I was about to book and they went with him because he’s the lighter-skinned Black man with the green eyes."
Howard hasn't publicly addressed Tyrese's comments. Watch Tyrese speak with Leah's Lemonade below.
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