So, where did all the black actresses go? For all the films I've watched in the theaters this year, I don't recall seeing a black actress as one of the main characters.

I know Hollywood doesn't need to put a quota together to please me. Black women make up a small part of the US population, about 6-7% or something. It is not as though blacks are the intended audience of any of the crap Hollywood or the Cable / Television Networks produce. Just because the spending power of black America is roughly around $700 billion shouldn't mean that Hollywood needs to pay any attention to this group. Right? They've got billions of Chinese and Indians in overseas markets to curry favor with.

But, wait! India and China already produce their own films. And why would they turn out to see films that don't address them culturally, socially, and ethnically?

So, why is Hollywood ignoring black American actresses?

I saw American Gangster. It is not a black film. Although it has a very large black and white cast - it's mostly all male. Think peacocks and roosters. This film was a Hollywood re-appraisal of the black exploitation movies of the 1970s. Aside from Afros, wide collar jackets, and old cars there was very little about it that smacked of that period. The movie lacked the vibe, the anger, and slang of that time.

American Gangster was a macho black male versus white male face-off flick that Hollywood likes to produce. It's easier because these types of films bring out everyone: men and women of all races who like the lead actors.

Aside from Ruby Dee playing Frank Lucas' Mom, there was not one black actress lead in this film. Not even Lucas' wife was portrayed as black. She was replaced by a white woman.

It's finally happened on-screen in Hollywood: black women don't exist except as baby makers, background dancers, or drug addicts. The movie industry has discovered that it can make profitable films with a black male cast, while completely excising black female actresses.

They can include a black male as main or supporting character, with a latina actress as a love interest, and the formula is complete.