10 Actors Who Made Real-Life Changes AFTER Movie Roles
7. Don Cheadle Writes A Book On Genocide After Hotel Rwanda
When an actor finds themselves at the centre of a project that is based on tragic real-life events, it's only natural for them to want to give everything they can to the role out of respect for the people affected by the true story.
Clearly, Don Cheadle felt this way when tasked with playing hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina in 2004's Hotel Rwanda, with the actor going on to earn an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance. However, his dedication to those who had suffered through this dreadful time didn't stop there.
Whilst attending the film's premiere in Uganda, Cheadle was inspired after speaking to a number of the people who found refuge at the titular hotel during the 1994 genocide that happened in Rwanda. Calling their stories "the stuff of epic films”, Cheadle then set off on a trip to Sudan alongside John Prendergast, a senior advisor for the International Crisis Group. There the two visited refugee camps in Darfur, spoke with those there about their harrowing experiences, before then penning a book together by the name of Not On Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond.
He also joined the Not on Our Watch charity co-founded by George Clooney.