Post by Tarry on May 10, 2016 15:10:19 GMT -5
George Takei takes on Marvel over Doctor Strange's whitewashing and says what we're thinking
George Takei has only enhanced his legendary status by speaking out about Doctor Strange's controversial whitewashing casting of The Ancient One.
Marvel cast the very white Tilda Swinton in the role, who in the comics hails from Tibet. Let's be clear: the character is a racist stereotype, but this wasn't the best solution.
One of the writers defended the casting, arguing that by making The Ancient One white and ignoring the character's Tibet roots, they avoid alienating China. He also went as far as calling "social justice warriors" idiots.
Marvel itself released a bizarre statement, claiming it has a "very strong record of diversity in its casting of films".
Let's count the number of Asian superheroes in the MCU movies...
Takei took to Facebook to air his frustration with the way Marvel and Doctor Strange are attempting to justify Swinton's casting.
"Let me get this straight," he wrote. "You cast a white actress so you wouldn't hurt sales... in Asia? This backpedaling is nearly as cringeworthy as the casting. Marvel must think we're all idiots.
"To those who say, 'She an actress, this is fiction', remember that Hollywood has been casting white actors in Asian roles for decades now, and we can't keep pretending there isn't something deeper at work here.
"If it were true that actors of Asian descent were being offered choice roles in films, these arguments might prevail. But there has been a long-standing practice of taking roles that were originally Asian and rewriting them for white actors to play, leaving Asians invisible on the screen and underemployed as actors.
"This is a very real problem, not an abstract one. It is not about political correctness, it is about correcting systemic exclusion. Do you see the difference?"
George Takei has only enhanced his legendary status by speaking out about Doctor Strange's controversial whitewashing casting of The Ancient One.
Marvel cast the very white Tilda Swinton in the role, who in the comics hails from Tibet. Let's be clear: the character is a racist stereotype, but this wasn't the best solution.
One of the writers defended the casting, arguing that by making The Ancient One white and ignoring the character's Tibet roots, they avoid alienating China. He also went as far as calling "social justice warriors" idiots.
Marvel itself released a bizarre statement, claiming it has a "very strong record of diversity in its casting of films".
Let's count the number of Asian superheroes in the MCU movies...
Takei took to Facebook to air his frustration with the way Marvel and Doctor Strange are attempting to justify Swinton's casting.
"Let me get this straight," he wrote. "You cast a white actress so you wouldn't hurt sales... in Asia? This backpedaling is nearly as cringeworthy as the casting. Marvel must think we're all idiots.
"To those who say, 'She an actress, this is fiction', remember that Hollywood has been casting white actors in Asian roles for decades now, and we can't keep pretending there isn't something deeper at work here.
"If it were true that actors of Asian descent were being offered choice roles in films, these arguments might prevail. But there has been a long-standing practice of taking roles that were originally Asian and rewriting them for white actors to play, leaving Asians invisible on the screen and underemployed as actors.
"This is a very real problem, not an abstract one. It is not about political correctness, it is about correcting systemic exclusion. Do you see the difference?"
He's still a zaddy though so it works.
