Roles Like Cordelia Cupp Are Long Overdue—But We’re So Glad She’s Here

We’ve seen Sherlock Holmes played by a zillion different white men, many British, most just faking the accent, to the extent that he’s evolved from a fictional character into a full blown archetype. We can pull him into the 21st century and make him a doctor named House, or write him a Young Sherlock Holmes prequel more Indiana Jones than Conan Doyle. We can do, in essence, anything we want with his source material.

Which is how we arrived at The Residence‘s Uzo Aduba as world renowned detective, Cordelia Cupp. An incredibly intelligent, confident and determined sleuth, avid birder, and nurturing aunt, who also happens to be a woman of color.

We know from many cues, be it her brown tweed ensemble or lack of patience with incompetent law enforcement, that she is undoubtedly the ‘Holmes’ of this story. She embodies his unparalleled intellect and complete sense of control when it comes to dissecting a case.

This is what representation looks like. Like a woman of color playing the same role men have for decades, and kicking absolute ass at it. Because she’s qualified, because she’s talented, and because it’s interesting and liberating to depict possibilities that have always been there, regardless of any assumed “status quo”.

Because women want to see themselves as they are. As the body types and skin colors they see reflected in the mirror instead of magazines. As individuals who are more than sidekicks, mothers, maids, or mistresses.

Cordelia Cupp gives a face and a voice to these demands. This is the playbook for what can happen when Hollywood casts a wider net for heroes. Studios would be the wiser to apply it to future projects, especially if they want to avoid that all but uncommon fan backlash for not getting it right because the verdict is in, and audiences are demanding more.