Page 105 - Sharp: The Book For Men FW21
P. 105

   “I’m saying this without any ego attached. There are not many people who can do what I do.”
Back in 2013, Domingo went to the New York State Writers Institute to accept an award. Backstage, he listened to his introduction. “I was listening to this man read my resumé, and it really took the wind out of me,” he says. “I didn’t realize I’d been doing so much for so long. It was a moment to really think about what I had built all those years, and to really understand what I was doing. I was so proud.”
Over the past decade, Domingo’s success has become more tangible as his stature has grown. It’s something that usually changes people, often for the worse, but for Domingo, it just means he understands his new responsibilities as someone with more access. “To be honest, I know people are watching in some ways, so I want to be clear about everything, be it how I dress or how I speak,” he says. The larger platform is something he’s hyperaware of, but at the same time, he’s still not used to people actually recognizing him — something he credits to finding fame later in his career, rather than at its start. Today, when people approach Domingo, he still wonders if he’s met them somewhere before. “That’s until I’m like, ‘Oh they know me from something.’”
I ask him if he believes everything happened for him when it should have. Does he wish mainstream success had happened sooner? He takes a moment to think about this, and the answer is yes and no. “If I had had success or name recognition early in my career, I don’t know if it would have been healthy for me, to be honest.” He tells me he has spent a lot of time thinking about this and unpacking what exactly that means. “A lot of times, we do this work and critics, pundits, everyone says you’re set up for an award that season. And then you aren’t,” he says. “I have won awards and it’s great, but it has helped me realize that nobody owns me.”
Finding success later in his career also means that Domingo has never really become typecast, something that is rare for a Black actor with his experience. “We haven’t seen a lot of Black Willem Dafoes, or Daniel Day Lewises or Dustin Hoffmans — and those were my idols,” he says. “But I think a lot of times, when it comes to being in this skin, we aren’t always allowed these opportunities.” He says that many Black actors who are his contemporaries get limited or shoved into a box in order to survive the industry.
I ask Domingo if he’s trying to surprise his audience with the varied roles he takes, from the villainous X in Zola to the nurturing Ali in Euphoria. The real question, though, is if he plans on emotionally terrorizing me again. “Well now, Sarah, it’s at the top of my list!” he says with a laugh.
“I have played a lot of wonderful supporting roles. I know what that engine requires, but there’s another engine that’s moving the whole train, and that’s the conductor.” Domingo is ready for those leading roles. He knows how to come into a movie or show for a couple of scenes and kill it, but as he explained to me earlier — he’s always looking for a new challenge.
No matter what Domingo does next, what’s most important for him is to have a sense of normalcy. “I’m not someone that has a lot of friends in the industry. I’m very much a Hollywood and Broadway actor, but my life is so normal,” he says. Thinking more about what he wants, he chooses his words carefully. “I want to go where the work is, I always want to feel like I’m just starting out. I never want to feel like the journey is over.”
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