When Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" premiered last December, the action-filled film set against the backdrop of the Maya empire launched the career of a young Texan named Rudy Youngblood.
In interviews plugging the movie, Youngblood, who plays the film's central character, Jaguar Paw, routinely discussed his Indian ancestry and his connections to three American tribes. He told one interviewer: "I also have ancestors who fought at Wounded Knee and Little Big Horn, so it's not hard to use my Native American heritage for this role."
But just as the 25-year-old actor climbs the ladder of Hollywood stardom, a Comanche conservative pundit is roiling the Native American community by raising questions about Youngblood's ancestry, sparking a raging debate on various American Indian websites. The issue strikes a sensitive chord as well in Hollywood, where today's movie industry can expect to come under fire for casting non-minorities in minority roles.
So far, the questions over Youngblood's ancestry haven't been enough to derail plans by First Americans in the Arts, a nonprofit group that honors Native American accomplishments in entertainment, to award him its outstanding new lead actor award at its Beverly Hills soiree on April 14, but David A. Yeagley is not giving up.
"He has no Indian blood in him that anyone can validate," Yeagley said. "[Comanche] officials got scooped up in the thrill of claiming a movie star."
For his part, Youngblood said he can't understand why Yeagley has it in for him.
"It's very hateful and very negative," Youngblood said in a recent phone interview. "He stalks me like he knows me. He's never met me."
Michelle R. Shining Elk, the actor's manager and publicist, calls Yeagley's allegations "off the wall" and in turn accuses Yeagley of falsifying his own background.
Burgeoning career
The controversy comes at a time when Youngblood is being courted by several producers. The actor has received "numerous" scripts and is currently in negotiations on a project, which Shining Elk would not identify except to say it would be even more physically demanding than his grueling role as a man on the run in "Apocalypto."
Youngblood, who earned acclaim for his work in the action-adventure movie, is represented by Gibson's agent Ed Limato and Jim Osborne at International Creative Management. For his part, Youngblood said, "I don't want the rest of my career to be pursuing Native American roles; I want to be challenged as an actor."
