In ‘Origin,’ Ava DuVernay and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor Seek the Roots of Racism

NEW YORK (AP)—Ava DuVernay kept hearing she had to read “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.” She had Isabel Wilkerson’s book in galleys before it was published in 2020. Oprah Winfrey kept telling her to read it. But she put it off. It seemed an imposing read. Copies kept proliferating in her home.
“At one point, a high-profile director said to me, ‘I heard you got the book,'” DuVernay said. “And I was like, ‘Yeah, I got a couple copies.’ He said, ‘No, I heard you’re doing it.’ I said, ‘As ...