David Oyelowo says Oprah changed my life

David Oyelowo has spoken of his respect and "deep love" for Oprah Winfrey says she has a huge influence in his life.

The British actor appears alongside the US star in Martin Luther King Jr. biopic Selma, which focuses on the late civil rights leader and his followers as they march from the title town to Montgomery to support the passing of a new law.

Both parties have spoken fondly of the project and each other, with David finding it almost impossible to contain his admiration for Oprah.

"Look, this is a woman who has done about three movies and has been Oscar-nominated twice – once as an actress and now as producer of Selma. If the rest of us had that batting average we would be in Meryl Streep territory!" he laughed to British magazine The Big Issue.

"Oprah is my American mother, really. She is a huge voice in my life – she is the reason Selma got made. When we were struggling to get it off the ground, I went to her and said we needed help. She came on board as a producer. She is someone I have a very deep love for. Oprah has changed my life."

They'd worked together before on 2013 movie The Butler, with their friendship truly cemented now.

David is pleased to see a lot more diversity in big films these days and hopes his offspring will be inspired by what they watch on the silver screen - especially as he has taken on several projects as producer, including a Nina Simone biopic.

"It is very important because films affect culture. Taking my daughter to see Annie the other day, with Quvenzhané Wallis in the title role, I could see the effect it had on her," he explained. "The disproportionate amount of white characters in leading roles is because those are the people green-lighting movies. I am a beneficiary of Oprah Winfrey putting her power behind our film.