Filmmaker Danny Boyle may have won a best picture Oscar for his 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire, but the director believes they wouldn't be able to make that film in present time, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The noted director reflected on the Oscar-winning film that starred Dev Patel and Freida Pinto. "Yeah, we wouldn't be able to make that now," he said of the film. "And that's how it should be. It's time to reflect on all that. We have to look at the cultural baggage we carry and the mark that we've left on the world."
When asked whether the production itself amounted to a form of colonialism, the director denied that but added, "Well, only in the sense that everything is. At the time it felt radical. We made the decision that only a handful of us would go to Mumbai. We'd work with a big Indian crew and try to make a film within the culture. But you're still an outsider. It's still a flawed method. That kind of cultural appropriation might be sanctioned at certain times. But at other times it cannot be."
Boyle shared that he is "proud of the film" but noted, "You wouldn't even contemplate doing something like that today. It wouldn't even get financed. Even if I was involved, I'd be looking for a young Indian film-maker to shoot it."
At the time, Slumdog Millionaire was a box office hit and went on to earn 10 Oscar nominations and win eight Academy Awards at the 2009 ceremony. Boyle won for best director.
On Friday, Boyle returned to theaters with 28 Years Later, a sequel that arrives more than twenty years after he and writer Alex Garland revitalized the zombie genre with 28 Days Later (2002) and 28 Weeks Later (2007). The film has been receiving rave reviews from audiences and critics. The film was shot back-to-back with its sequel 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, set to be released in January 2026.
