20 Things You Didn’t Know About The Green Mile
2. Some Critics Believe The Premise Is Racist
Legendary director Spike Lee, amongst others, has criticised the film for employing the tired trope of the 'Magical Negro' with the John Coffey character.
This idea invariably comes from white writers, and features a black character whose only function in the narrative is to help the white protagonists, usually both practically and spiritually: their lives are bettered by his presence as, displaying otherworldly wisdom, he uses some form of mystical power to perform miracles, usually sacrificing himself in doing so.
Lee's dismissal of the film is typically blunt and to the point:
"These films all have these magical, mystical Negroes who show up as some sort of spirit or angel but only to benefit the white characters. I mean, Michael Clarke Duncan gave a good performance in The Green Mile, but when I saw that movie I knew he was going to get an Academy Award nomination. The Academy just loves roles like that because it makes them feel so liberal. But if this character has such magical powers that he can touch Tom Hanks and cure him of his urinary tract infection, why can't he use those gifts to walk out of prison?"
King’s defence has always been that Coffey’s railroading all the way to the green mile was only due to the colour of his skin: he made him a black man because of the extent of racism in the South back in the 1930s.