Sophia Novmete Recalls Racist Fan Heckling Her To Resign From ‘Rings of Power’

Actress Sophia Nomvete is fighting back against racism after being cast in Amazon Prime’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

Nomvete stars in the show as Disa, the first female dwarf of color in the series. She told The Hollywood Reporter being cast was a “huge moment, both personally and professionally,” however, people tried to dim her light with their racist remarks and rhetoric. “I think I kind of skipped in naively thinking that it’s gonna be great. I’m a dwarf, it’s gonna be such fun.”

The actress spoke out at the second annual Raising Our Voices luncheon to talk about the negative feedback she experienced during her big moment. She remembers being called “fat” and “too black” to play the role. She says people weren’t generally polite to her at all. “There were N-bombs, I had no place here. ‘You’re too fat, you’re too black. Why are you here?’” Nomvete said. “One fan, in particular, asked her to resign from the series. “I’m sure that you’re a wonderful actress and a really lovely person. I just, I don’t think you should be part of this, it’s not right,” people would tell her. “If you could potentially just send a letter to Amazon with your resignation, I’d be very grateful.’”

While people hoped for her to fail, she found courage in the role. After her daughter saw her face on a London billboard, the British-born actress realized that she represents the future and wasn’t going to let something like racism push her away. “For the future of our industry and the generation, it is a must that I stand in my power and my light and do as much as I can with this character,” Nomvete said, according to Eurweb. “I understood the assignment, and that was to help people understand and to embrace them and love them — you would never disregard a child if they were scared… they’re frightened because they haven’t seen us before.”