This Means War

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot was a film about the war which came out in March of 2016. The film starred famous actress Tina Fey and was also produced by her. The film did not do very well in the box office, making only a third of its production costs. Though it did recieve good ratings, there was one problem critics and activists just couldn't let slide; the two main Afghan characters in the movie were played by white actors. This is a big problem in general; Hollywood continuously casts white actors to play colored rolls when there are numerous equally skilled actors who would fit the needs of the role skill wise and nationality wise. Tina Fey responded to this backlash claiming that the casting director searched through many people and found the actors who were best fit to play the roll.

She's playing Nina Simone?

One recent controversial casting choice involved Zoe Saldana being casted to play the famous blues singer Nina Simone in an upcoming biopic called,"Nina". People were upset because Saldana, a Latina woman, was casted to play Simone, who is an African American woman. After a preview of the movie was released on March 2, 2016, audiences were appalled to see Saldana covered in makeup that was darker than her skin tone in order to look like Nina Simone. People were confused as to why a black woman wasn't chosen to play the part. Hopefully Saldana will do an amazing job playing Nina Simone, calming down the confusion and discontent regarding her role. 

King of Pop Played by White British Actor

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/feb/05/joseph-fiennes-michael-jackson-shocked-to-be-cast
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/28/joseph-fiennes-michael-jackson-race-problems-oscarssowhite

http://thegrio.com/2017/01/11/joseph-fiennes-as-michael-jackson-in-urban-myths/ 1/18/2017

           The late King of Pop, Michael Jackson, will be portrayed by the actor, Joseph Fiennes, in a new film called Urban Myths. This has caused controversy because it is a white actor playing a black man. Back in 1993 in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Jackson said it would be horrifying for a white man to play him in any production. According to an article, Jackson was born black, so although his skin transformed to a lighter complexion, Fiennes can not capture Jackson's blackness in this film. Jackson's daughter, Paris Jackson is offended by this decision.

Doctor Wh-ite

Doctor Who is a British television series that has been airing on BBC since 1963 and was rebooted for a modern continuation in 2005. It is the longest running sci-fi show in the world and is regularly watched by millions of people around the world. But some people have accused the show of being racist. The main roll of Doctor Who is the doctor who regenerates into a new person with the same memory every single time he dies. This allows the show to continue forever and keep changing the lead actor when needed. Mainly people argue though that because the creators haven't casted a colored person to play the roll of the doctor, they are racist. The show fights back though, stating that they have a history of casting a diverse cast for either a major or guest role. Years back, for instance, Freema Agyeman played the first back companion and Noel Clarke played a major role for 5 consecutive years. For the new season coming out in a few months, they have once again casting a black companion which is a major role and is just as important as the doctor. The show's creators claim that their casting is strictly color-blind and they cast whoever is the best actor.

Color Blind Casting

When books, games, historical events or television shows are transformed into movies or shows, the actors portraying the characters, are often very different from what the characters "originally," looked like. Broadway's Hamilton, and J.K Rowling's Harry Potter, are great examples of "color blind casting." This form of casting is often frowned upon with the audience. People complain that the actors should look exactly like they originally looked to avoid confusion. There are also complaints about casting calls in these situations, they sometimes exclude a certain racial group in hopes for a specific look for a character. According to CNN, the play Hamilton,"has come under fire for a casting call that sought "NON-WHITE" performers." The show's creator responded by saying, "the point is the cast is supposed resemble America now: "It looks like what you see when you get on the A train to go to work."" Color blind casting, although controversial, allows actors from all different backgrounds to have a chance to be in the spotlight. 

Hamilton Play Bill Photo Credit: Steve Jurvetson 

JLO in Controversy

Selena Quintanilla's cover for song "Amor Prohibido"
Photo credit: Brayan E. Old Flickr via Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND

Back in  the 1990's, Selena Quintanilla, a 23 year old American was becoming popular among the Latino culture. She lived in Texas with her parents. In 1995, the president of her club shot her. Months later of that year, her family decided to make a movie about her. Jennifer Lopez was among the 22,000 girls that auditioned for Selena's role. When it was announced that she was going to play Selena, controversy arose. Many argued that a Puertorican-American shouldn't be playing the role of a Mexican-American. Others argued that at least a Latina was playing the role. The Warner Bros. wanted a non-Latina to play the role. However, the director Gregory Nava fought for Lopez to get the role. After much arguing, Lopez got the role. Overall, it doesn't matter if people don't agree that Lopez wasn't right for the role because the movie was released international and translated into 20 different languages. Therefore, the movie was successful with Lopez playing Selena.

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Age Is Nothing but a Number

Some of your favorite theater and television characters are played by actors who are much older or much younger then the characters that they are portraying. When actors are casted for roles, their age is often overlooked if they have the right look for the part/ the skill for the job. Jason Earles, known for playing Hannah Montana's brother on the hit Disney show, was actually in his thirties when his character was supposed to be eighteen years old! Theater actors play characters who are not their age more often than television actors do. Students in school plays, and actors on broadway alike, play characters who are nowhere near their actual age. According to the Huffington Post, "child labor laws cause studios to hire adult young folks to escape the necessity of shorter working hours and having a teacher on the set to conduct required schoolwork." Next time you're watching your favorite television show, or enjoying an excellent play, don't be fooled by great acting, most of the actors are no where near the age of the characters that they are playing!

In Too Depp

In the summer of 2013, Disney's The Lone Ranger came out in theaters. Many people where excited about seeing an old great cartoon become a live action movie but when they found out who was going to play Tonto, the lone ranger's trusty parter, they were outraged. Johnny Depp is known for playing a wide range of different characters by putting on makeup and hiding his face. Playing Tonto, a Native American, was just another costume Depp was putting on, another character he was portraying. Some people were offended and bothered by this because they believe a Native American should be playing the row of Tonto because that is his nationality. Depp claimed a few years ago that he has some Native American heritage but that was never confirmed to be true. Even though some people still may have enjoyed the movie others called it "critically panned and a box office disaster."

Comeback of a Play

After God Of Vengeance came out, it started a controversy because it displayed the idea of lesbians. The play was first performed on December 20, 1922 on Provincetown Playhouse in New York City. However, this first performance was performed in Yiddish. The first English translation was performed at the Apollo Theater in New York City. The first same sex kiss took place during this performance. It was a remarkable milestone for Broadway. The actors were arrested under obscenity charges. At the time, this was something that wasn't supposed to be on stage because of censorship. Time has changed and things like this aren't censored anymore. It has become part of our nature. According to Huffington Post, the play is being performed until January 22 at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. Most of the scenes have been kept from the original play.

Jobs Movie

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Steve Jobs died in 2011 from pancreatic cancer. A movie about his life was made in 2013. At first, Sony was producing the movie. They had cast Christian Bale as their Steve Jobs. Aaron Sorkin, the movie screenwriter wanted Tom Cruise to play the role of Jobs. Danny Boyle, the film director was concern about age and didn't think that Cruise was right for the role. Bale had been given the role because of his star power.  Bale soon quit the film and Sony didn't get enough funding so they dropped the project. Universal later picked it up and finished it. Overall, the film was fulled with a lot of controversy.

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A Mighty Problem

Mariane Pearl, a journalist and author, wrote the memoir, “A Mighty Heart: The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Danny Pearl.” Her husband Danny Pearl was a journalist that was kidnapped and killed by terrorists in Pakistan in 2002. The memoir turned into a movie that was released in 2007. Overall, it told Pearl's experience after the death of her husband. Angelina Jolie was cast to play the role of Mariane Pearl. However, controversy quickly arose as people argued that Mariane Pearl is a women of color and Jolie isn't, so she shouldn't play the role. Jolie wore make up to make her skin appear darker. In addition, she wore a wig to resemble Mrs. Pearl's curly hair. According to the Seattle Times, the movie director, Michael Winterbottom, it was hard to find someone that had all of Mrs. Pearl's heritage background. Mrs. Pearl is French with Half cuban, Half dutch, and a quarter Chinese descendent. Winterbottom claims that it was hard to find an actress that fits these requirements. Honestly, there probably are people who fit these requirements, but the director himself said that there wasn't anyone else that can play the role like Jolie.

Angelina Jolie at the Nasen Awards in 2011.
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Barbie In Trouble

The Barbie doll has been around for quite some time. According to The Washington Post, Amy Schumer will be playing Barbie in the new upcoming Barbie film. A film that revolves around the idea that Barbie isn't perfect in Babieland and is kicked out into the  'real-world adventure.' Overall, it's about time that Barbie starts to teach girls that no one is perfect. It's going to go against what Barbie has been portraying over the years. This will be a phase that no one has seen before. Barbie has been teaching girls that the only way to be considered "perfect" is if you're skinny. That's what Mirror Mirror Eating Disorders said. This leads many women and girls to develop various eating disorders. The fact that she's not perfect anymore really engages the audience, making them want to see the movie. Amy Schumer was a good casting choice because she's not what Barbie portrays. She has a figure that isn't the figure that Barbie typically have: the skinny one. This will really be a good message to all females, that you can be just the way you are.

Barbie wearing a hand knitted sweater.

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The Ocean Waves Are Coming IN

As the year is coming to an end, producers are coming up with more ideas for new movies for 2017. Some are going as far and starting movies that will be released in 2018. Oceans 8, an original film that was released in 2001, will be remake into Oceans 11. This time, the cast will consist of only female. Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Sarah Paulson, Rihanna, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Mindy Kaling, and Awkwafina will be starring the movie.  It's fair enough that this cast should only consist of females, Oceans 8, had a cast of only male actors.  However, there are rumors that Matt Damon will be making a slight appearance in the new film. According to The Christian Times, there's a possibility that somehow the films will have a connection that will bring both of them to be part of the same time period. Making this connection between both movies will be amazing because it just adds more excitement to it.

Sarah Paulson at the Premier of 12 Years a SlavePhoto credit: GabboT via Foter.com / CC BY-SA

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Pretty Strange

Marvel's new movie, Doctor Strange, has been an ultimate success. Just coming out in the beginning of November, it is already nearing $400 million in the box office. The movie is appreciated for its great actors, special effects, and story of course, but one thing seemed to aggravate fans. One of the characters from the original comics was an old asian made known as The Ancient One; he was Strange's teacher. In the movie though, they cast him as a white woman. The creators of the show backed up this division by saying they wanted to move away from the stereotype of an old asian man always being the wise teacher; they said they wanted some diversity especially since there weren't many strong female roles in the movie. Some people still don't find this a good enough excuse saying that it is asian culture that a someone who is a teacher is supposed to be old and wise since it is a role of high respect.

The Critics of The Lighting Thief

Alexandra Daddario, plays the role of Annabeth Chase
in The Lighting Thief movie
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Many fans were excited when it was announced that The Lightning Thief, a novel by Rick Riordan, would be made into a film. Both the film and the novel take place in the famous Camp Half-Blood. According to the website, IMDb, the film didn't include many details that are described in the novel. The most pointed error was the fact that in the book, Annabeth Chase is described as having blond hair, but in the movie Alexandra Daddario, plays the role of Annabeth with brown hair. Many other things are changed in the movie, making the movie differ from the novel. Many of the things that were changed were quite important to the plot because it makes the story more interesting. The fact that Percy Jackson and Annabeth aren't 12 years old in the movie, really takes the humor out of everything. Overall, the movie doesn't reflect what's described in the novel. This really upset many fans who were expecting their imaginations come to life. Should movies be like the novel or should they be different?

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Apocalypse of Angry Fans?

American superhero film X-Men: Apocalypse based on characters from Marvel comics dealt with controversy over their billboard. Many found the billboard offensive, as it shows Mystique played by Jennifer Lawrence being on a chokehold by the main villain, Apocalypse. Those who found it offensive believe that this billboard portrays and approves violence against woman, according to this article. Fox came out with an apology statement saying that they would never condone violence against women. However, many also agree that this billboard is not offensive at all, in fact, it shows how women can take the lead role of playing the victim. 

White-Washing

Hollywood has been known for, "white-washing," its movies. Also referred to as," race-bending," whitewashing happens when most, or all of the characters in movie, or television show, are portrayed by white actors. From Elizabeth Taylor playing Cleopatra in 1963, to Joseph Fiennes playing Micheal Jackson, white-washing has been a problem for a long time. Recently, Lions Gate Entertainment released "Gods of Egypt." The movie focuses on the ruthless battle between the god of darkness, Set against a mortal named Bek, and powerful god Horus. Each character is supposed to be an Egyptian native, but almost all of the actors were far from, "Egyptian." A mixture of, French, Danish, Australian, and English actors, who were white, bombarded the cast, upsetting millions of viewers. Realizing that they had upset a lot of people, Lionsgate released an apology saying," We recognize that it is our responsibility to help ensure that casting decisions reflect the diversity and culture of the time periods portrayed. In this instance we failed to live up to our own standards," as well as, "We have, can and will continue to do better."  Movies should reflect diversity, not only to create an accurate depiction of the time period in the movie, but  also to reflect the audience watching the movie. Giving people the opportunity to see people that look like them on a large screen is important, because it shows them that they are capable of doing big things as well.  

Mu-Lyin

Disney was about to make a Mulan live action movie with a white male lead. This news angered many people since the main focus of Mulan has always been a Chinese female who disguises herself as a man to save China. The alleged first draft mentioned a European trader who comes to China and falls in love with Mulan while protecting her and saving her empire, but Disney now mentioned that this draft will not be any part of the live action film. They stated that they will keep Mulan as the main character as well as include an all Asian cast. This big statement relieved many people's worries about Disney casting white actors to play Chinese roles.

Fans Hunger a Real Character

Jennifer Lawrence in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

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As The Hunger Games'  novel series became so popular, many fans were excited when they heard that the series would be made into a film. Many were against the decision of Jennifer Lawrence playing the role of the main character, Katniss Everdeen. According to Screen Rant, many fans argued that Lawrence didn't resemble Katniss the way that it was described in the novel, the one with "olive-skinned [and] dark-haired tomboy." In this case, it does matter how the person playing Katniss looked because even though there are not a lot of physical traits that are given about her, there are some. For example, the person playing Katniss should at least have brown hair because there is no excuse for this. The fact that Lawrence changed her hair color for the role shows how much she valued this character and this was a big plus for her. Overall, this casting decision impacted the film in a way that no one can replace her. Why do you think Suzanne Collins only provided a few physical traits about Katniss?

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The Great Obstacle

Matt Damon at the Jason Bourne Premiere in Japan

Photo credit: Dick Thomas Johnson via Foter.com / CC BY

Another American actor will be playing the role of an Asian man. Matt Damon will be part of the best force to defend The Great Wall of China against a monster in The Great Wall, a fantasy movie that takes place about 1,000 years ago. Lately, many people have started to trash-talk about this casting decision. According to International Business Times, actress Constance Wu, argues by writing "...We like our color and our culture and our strengths and our own stories." She doesn't think that Damon is the best person to play this role. She isn't alone, as many other Asian-Americans also express their feelings about this outrageous decision. It seems like Hollywood is struggling with overcoming this obstacle of starring people that are from a different ethnic group than the role they portray. This film is directed by Yimou Zhang, a Chinese film director and producer.  It is set to release in February 2017.

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