Merle Oberon's mother was from Sri Lanka, but the Golden Age actress pretended to be fully white to avoid Hays Code restrictions and racial prejudice to land leading roles.
All That's Interesting | 31.03.2026 08:00
Merle Oberon was one of the leading Hollywood stars of the 1930s. She played heroines like Anne Boleyn and Catherine Earnshaw from Wuthering Heights, and she was even nominated for an Academy Award for her role in The Dark Ages (1935). But she had a secret that could have destroyed her career.
