'Get Out' breakout Lil Rel Howery is a hero to TSA agents — but still has to take his shoes off
You had to figure real-life TSA agents enjoyed Lil Rel Howery’s hilarious — and heroic — portrayal of Rod Williams in last year’s sleeper hit/pop culture phenomenon Get Out. And you’d be right. But it hasn’t changed Howery’s airport experience.
“They show me love, but I still gotta do everything,” Howery told Yahoo Entertainment at CinemaCon in Las Vegas (watch above), where he was talking up his upcoming comedy, Uncle Drew, which expands on the eponymous Kyrie Irving shorts.
“They’re like ‘TS-mutha-f***ing-A!’ I’m like, ‘Oh thanks, can I just go through?’ They’re like, ‘Nah, take your shoes off.’”
Written and directed by Jordan Peele, Get Out was both a box office sensation and a rare genre film to compete for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, where Peele took home Best Original Screenplay. Its helped launch the careers of star Daniel Kaluuya as well as the suddenly ubiquitous Howery, who has also been seen on TV’s The Carmichael Show and Insecure.
The subversive racial satire has sparked countless conversations — including between Howery and the TSA.
“I’ve had debates now with TSA agents, like the last few times,” the actor said. “Every airport does something different and it’s a little annoying. … I thought I had more pull. I don’t know why I think I really have TSA pull, like ‘Can we change this system? Who do I need to talk to? Tell him Rod Williams from Get Out wants to have a conversation with the head of [TSA].”
Uncle Drew opens June 29.
Watch the trailer:
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