Fans Are Not Pleased With Lynn Whitfield's Igbo Accent On 'The Resident'

February 21, 2019
1214 Views

At the risk of sounding repetitive, Hollywood has a massive African accent problem. From Will Smith in Concussion to everyone in Black Panther, Hollywood actors tend to stick to one generic African accent regardless of where in the continent the character they’re portraying is from.

It’s everywhere, but most recently in the last episode of Fox’s medical show, The Resident. The Resident has a Nigerian doctor, Dr. Mina Okafor (pronounced Horrkefer by her colleagues and patients at Chastain Park Memorial Hospital), who is whip-smart, quick and very straight to the point.

(Photo: FOX/The Resident)

Black Panther‘s Shaunette Renée Wilson, the talented Guyanese-born American actress playing Dr. Okafor, thankfully dropped her own lazy Igbo accent a few episodes into the show — allowing us to enjoy her performance without cringing at every turn.

But The Resident found a new way to torture us. The most recent episode of the show welcomed Mina’s mother, Dr. Okeke (played by Emmy winner, Lynn Whitfield), who is saddled with what is quite possibly the worst Nigerian accent we’ve ever heard.

Interesting storyline notwithstanding, it comes off as lazy, because they could have actually hired a Nigerian actress or a Nigerian consultant since they seem so interested in portraying our people and culture. Nigerians, never ones to play around, let them know as much.

Here are some of the reactions:

Tech and politics. Is there even a difference between the two?

You may be interested

Boniface Scores As Leverkusen Beat Bochum, Close In On Bayern Munich
Sports
2 views
Sports
2 views

Boniface Scores As Leverkusen Beat Bochum, Close In On Bayern Munich

Webby - March 28, 2025

Victor Boniface was on target for Bayer Leverkusen in their 3-1 home win against Bochum in the Bundesliga on Friday…

NPFL: Defeat To Kwara United Painful — Nasarawa United Boss Yusuf
Sports
18 views
Sports
18 views

NPFL: Defeat To Kwara United Painful — Nasarawa United Boss Yusuf

Webby - March 27, 2025

Nasarawa United head coach Salisu Yusuf has reacted to his team’s 1-0 loss to Kwara United, reports Completesports.com. Emeka Onyema…

Cote d’Ivoire Withdraw As Host Of U-20 AFCON
Sports
2 views
Sports
2 views

Cote d’Ivoire Withdraw As Host Of U-20 AFCON

Webby - March 27, 2025

Cote d’Ivoire announced late Tuesday its withdrawal from hosting the 2025 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations just weeks before the…

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.