Marlon Brando in “Teahouse of the August Moon” as a Japanese man; Joel Grey in “Remo Williams” as a Korean; Angelina Jolie as Mariane Pearl, an Afro/Cuban woman; Laurence Olivier as Othello; Natalie Wood as Maria; Johnny Depp as Tonto… it goes on and on. I have no problem with Jordan Peele taking a stand. White actors will find work, don’t worry.
Well, we’re all supposed to be colorblind, but I always laughed at those old (and not so old) movies where Asian and native American characters were played by all Euro-styled people. A big Norwegian as Moses? Ooookaaaay. It’s one thing if the producers/directors are going after comedy, I suppose, but come on. Cast actors who look the part. By the way, I think Cruise’s character was in fact a Eurostyle dude in Japan. I could be wrong, but I don’t think the guy was supposed to have been Japanese.
Just a nitpicking point. Tom Cruise’s character wasn’t supposed to be Japanese, so his inclusion in the list is unwarranted. I also never thought that samurai had to be any particular race as long as they lived by the code of Bushido, the way of the warrior.
The “Last Samurai” was, I thought, supposed to be the warlord that captured him and taught him the Japanese way.
…personally, I have always thought that any good actor should be able to play any role , it should be about the quality of the acting, and their ability to enable the audience to become so involved with the story and character that they don’t care if the actor’s and the character’s race, colour, age, or even gender, match…
Who else would you pick to play a Union Officer, fresh of the killing fields of the Great Plains, who adopted Japanese Culture? A better actor is a given but how many non-white officers were in the Union Army during the Civil War?
The irony just dawned on me of the white guy trying to get offended about a black director talking about not casting white actors as leads, finally twisting himself into using “then why don’t you people make the movies you want to see yourselves?,” bringing him right back to the original point of “yeah, that’s why we’re not casting white folks as leads.” Change “movies” to “comic strips” and you get the exact same situation.
And then there’s the matter of Robert Downey Jr. wearing “blackface” in Tropic Thunder. I’ve seen a lot of criticism over it and I understand, but I don’t think they’ve even seen the movie. Robert Downey Jr.‘s character, Kirk Lazarus, isn’t even black—he’s a white Australian, hailed as “the most-acclaimed actor of his generation”, who had his skin surgically darkened so that he could play the role of Sgt. Lincoln Osiris in a Vietnam War film. Kirk Lazarus’s whole character arc is about him coming to accept himself as he really is, not as someone pretending to be other people. It’s also a commentary on how white actors steal roles from POC.
jvn about 5 years ago
Marlon Brando in “Teahouse of the August Moon” as a Japanese man; Joel Grey in “Remo Williams” as a Korean; Angelina Jolie as Mariane Pearl, an Afro/Cuban woman; Laurence Olivier as Othello; Natalie Wood as Maria; Johnny Depp as Tonto… it goes on and on. I have no problem with Jordan Peele taking a stand. White actors will find work, don’t worry.
some idiot from R'lyeh Premium Member about 5 years ago
I had such hopes for the Prince of Persia.
Fiona D Premium Member about 5 years ago
Well done, Tauhid.
Diat60 about 5 years ago
Sorry, but this strip has changed from being about a smart small boy and his family and friends to a diatribe on race relations. I’m out.
Ida No about 5 years ago
If Spike Lee did a super hero movie with an all black cast, would anyone salute?
TheLetterista.com about 5 years ago
Well, we’re all supposed to be colorblind, but I always laughed at those old (and not so old) movies where Asian and native American characters were played by all Euro-styled people. A big Norwegian as Moses? Ooookaaaay. It’s one thing if the producers/directors are going after comedy, I suppose, but come on. Cast actors who look the part. By the way, I think Cruise’s character was in fact a Eurostyle dude in Japan. I could be wrong, but I don’t think the guy was supposed to have been Japanese.
PoodleGroomer about 5 years ago
Robert Downey Jr. in Tropical Thunder doing blackface.
Wlly Blly about 5 years ago
Just a nitpicking point. Tom Cruise’s character wasn’t supposed to be Japanese, so his inclusion in the list is unwarranted. I also never thought that samurai had to be any particular race as long as they lived by the code of Bushido, the way of the warrior.
The “Last Samurai” was, I thought, supposed to be the warlord that captured him and taught him the Japanese way.
jadoo823 about 5 years ago
…personally, I have always thought that any good actor should be able to play any role , it should be about the quality of the acting, and their ability to enable the audience to become so involved with the story and character that they don’t care if the actor’s and the character’s race, colour, age, or even gender, match…
Carl Premium Member about 5 years ago
Who else would you pick to play a Union Officer, fresh of the killing fields of the Great Plains, who adopted Japanese Culture? A better actor is a given but how many non-white officers were in the Union Army during the Civil War?
Ida No about 5 years ago
The irony just dawned on me of the white guy trying to get offended about a black director talking about not casting white actors as leads, finally twisting himself into using “then why don’t you people make the movies you want to see yourselves?,” bringing him right back to the original point of “yeah, that’s why we’re not casting white folks as leads.” Change “movies” to “comic strips” and you get the exact same situation.
Abcormal almost 4 years ago
And then there’s the matter of Robert Downey Jr. wearing “blackface” in Tropic Thunder. I’ve seen a lot of criticism over it and I understand, but I don’t think they’ve even seen the movie. Robert Downey Jr.‘s character, Kirk Lazarus, isn’t even black—he’s a white Australian, hailed as “the most-acclaimed actor of his generation”, who had his skin surgically darkened so that he could play the role of Sgt. Lincoln Osiris in a Vietnam War film. Kirk Lazarus’s whole character arc is about him coming to accept himself as he really is, not as someone pretending to be other people. It’s also a commentary on how white actors steal roles from POC.