Storm Reid called out Hollywood for its lack of stylists educated about Black hair

“It feels dehumanising”

BEAUTYcrew Beauty Editor / January 20 2022

There’s been a trend moving through Hollywood recently that’s seen a number of celebrities default to their natural hair texture. 

But according to an interview with People, Euphoria actress Storm Reid found that when it comes to styling Black hair, natural hair or curly hair on-set, the industry has been slow to get with the times.

"They really just don't understand Black hair care. It's disheartening and it's heartbreaking," the actress explained to the publication. 

The now 18-year-old has been acting for the past 10 years, and while she may have had positive experiences working on sets like A Wrinkle In Time and Euphoria, that hasn’t always been the case.

"It has been a struggle for me specifically on sets when it comes to the hair disparity and people not just knowing how to deal with Black hair," Reid explained.

“It feels dehumanising… when it's the time for your hair to look nice and there's nobody on set to be able to help you achieve that." 

But Kim Kimble (the dedicated hairstylist on the A Wrinkle In Time set) helped to cure Reid’s phobia of the hair and makeup trailer, and subsequently empowered her to be more vocal on future projects.

“I think that changed my life [and] it changed the way I saw that we can have these Black department heads really be there and take care of you,"  the actress explained to People.

"From that point on, unless I have braids and I know how to take care of them myself, I've requested on every set to have someone,” Reid went on to say. “Whether they're the department head or not, [I want someone] who understands my hair, that cares about Black hair care, that is actually listening to me." 

Reid has taken her interest in Black hair education one step further by partnering with Black haircare brand Dark & Lovely on their ​​Building Beautiful Futures initiative. It’s a campaign which seeks to provide young Black female professionals with equal opportunity through mentorship programs and career coaching. 

When Reid’s not challenging the status quo, the Euphoria actress can be seen spearheading new beauty trends on the red carpet. She’s a pioneer of the pearl makeup trend that’s taking over 2022.

Main image credit: Getty

Briar is the Beauty Editor at BEAUTYcrew. Her 'down for anything' attitude has resulted in more than a handful of hair transformations, and she doesn't mind being used as a guinea pig for the industry's most unusual products and treatments. Her work has also appeared on Refinery29, Girlfriend and beautyheaven.