Diversity and Representation in Media

Here are some panels if you want.

Panels like these are still really common when they show up together.◊ Nowadays they're even on the same team.◊

Martian Manhunter I assume

Yes him.

Also Joe's had a pretty good arc this season about forging a relationship with the son he never knew he had. Who's primed to become a speedster along with Wells' daughter next season.

I don't watch Supergirl, because the Pilot episode REALLY put me off, but Martian Manhunter is an alien. That is like counting Gamora as diverse casting. Don't get me wrong, I love to see Zoe Saldana on screen and am happy about every job she gets, but I would be even happier if she weren't covered in blue or green goo in her leading roles.

Well it is diverse casting becuase someone not white was cast as in a film. Just, like, not, direct representation on, like, the screen becuase the character is not the race or skin color of the actor themselves. I mean, the fact that they cast people of other ethnicities is still a form of improvement even if it's not 1-to-1 seen on screen.

In Supergirl it takes a while for MM to reveal his identity. He's posing as Hank Henshaw for most of the time and will probably keep using him as his human form for season 2.

Late reply, but on the topic of Carol Danvers and the theoretical racebending thereof: I only mentioned racebending her because we know for a fact that the Captain Marvel movie will be featuring Carol, not Monica. To be clear - I would prefer a Monica Rambeau movie to a movie featuring a racebent Carol Danvers, but since that's not what's happening here, I was considering alternate means of making the MCU more inclusive.

Part of me is fearing that Hollywood has stumbled across what they think is the perfect way to include actors of color - just slather 'em up in makeup or CGI, so that way they get the diversity credit without having to actually have show any nonwhite people onscreen. This article goes into a little more detail.

This is why I've started fearing that Kelly Marie Tran will be playing a droid or an alien or something in Episode VIII. It's entirely possible, of course, that I'm not giving Disney enough credit right now, especially considering the casting of John Boyega, Donnie Yen, and Jiang Wen in leading Star Wars roles, but the suspicion is still nagging at me. I mean, don't mistake me, it would still be positive that an Asian actress gets to play a leading character in blockbuster film, makeup or no makeup. But we have the chance to have the first ever woman of color as a lead character in a Star Wars movie. I want to see that happen.

I make an exception for Nyong'o because she wants to work primarily in mo-cap and because both The Force Awakens and The Jungle Book had more diverse casts than most blockbusters, but it is a fair point compared to white actors.

edited 14th May '16 7:46:36 PM by Tuckerscreator

I don't think we should be writing out diverse actors just because they aren't adding representation. If there are actors from more backgrounds being chosen for larger roles in films, that's an inherent good in the industry, and one that the industry will begin to shift to accommodate, which will, hopefully, lead to more diverse roles period. It's a slow transition, but it's meaningful change.

Sure, it's still generally a positive thing overall. But like the article said, the problem is that actors of color are chosen for the CGI-and-makeup roles with disproportionate frequency compared to white actors. On its own, it's not a bad thing (as with Nyong'o, who apparently prefers that, and that's perfectly fine), but the trend is troubling. Again, my concern is that Hollywood is growing to view this as a sort of "cheat" - a way to have what is technically a diverse cast while still having no actual characters of color. If that way of thinking becomes to prevalent - and to be fair, there are no significant indications that that will be the case - then it would end up being a negative thing for the industry.

Still, let's not forget - an A-list white actor was chosen for what was nearly a CGI-laden role. Scarlett Johansson in GitS! Where they tried (and apparently failed, thank all the gods) to use VFX to make actors look Asian. So hey, there is some balance there.

Judging by what I've seen and heard, Kelly Marie Tran is in fact playing a human character. Also thei new Power Trio includes a woman, a Black man and a Hispanic Guy, plus there were other female (and even WOC) and POC character sprinkled in throughout the film (heck even the evil Space Nazi's had several of those). Heck besides Lupita (who as mentioned before apparently wants to take on mo-cap roles which, fair enough) the two other most prominent "buried under makeup/mo-cap" actors in TFA were Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis (both White guys).

Is it the be all end all, of course not. Is more progress needed, absolutely. Is it a decent start, yes I think so.

edited 14th May '16 9:39:04 PM by Punisher286

I'm sorry, but this fear of "A-list actors of color are going to be reduced to playing motion cap" is stupid. So, because Idris Elba has taken some VA roles and was happy to play a heavily make-up alien in the next Star Trek movie, we must now negate the fact that he is still the leading candidate to replace Daniel Craig as James Bond. And the fact that he's playing the originally white protagonist in the upcoming Dark Tower movie. No, this is clearly a sign that the only big role that actors of color can look forward to in the near future is "Jdklas the alien sidekick".

Just because four black actors decided to do some voice work and/or motion cap (or in Zoe Saldana case in Guardians of the Galaxy, have the CGI-department make her skin green), does not make it a trend. And sorry to tell you this, but when you state that you fear that an actress of color is going to play some droid or an alien because Lupita Nyong'o played a motion cap alien, you are condemning Nyong'o for deciding to take a break and just do some motion cap work.

(By the way I really love this line from the article: "Patton's casting as a half-orc in Warcraft strikes me as particularly pernicious: Only in Hollywood would someone think that the beautiful Patton's mixed-race features could contain a dollop of monstrousness." Yes, monstrousness◊.)

edited 15th May '16 4:26:19 AM by rjryan3

Yeah that last part did sound fairly idiotic.

AFAIK nothing has been said about Elba taking over and Craig is doing one more movie before they start looking for a replacement/put the franchise on ice for a few years.

Reposting this because it's probably relevant:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/critics-notebook-kanyes-blue-eyes-890727

Honestly, what needs to be called out more than Hollywood casting diverse actors in CGI roles (which I agree isn't a problem at all) is the constant pulls for "attachment". As if we need some random character from normal land to be thrust into this fascinating fantastical landscape in order to emphasize with them.

I love Peter Quill and Phillip Fry as much as the next guy, and Peter in particular is the leader of the Guardians in the comics as well, but I hate the implication that if we don't have Heroguy Mcwhityface running around as a "relatable" protagonist audiences won't be able to care about the story, because the only way to make a relatable protagonist is to make them as close to what executives think their main target audience is.

edited 15th May '16 12:39:36 PM by InAnOdderWay

It's probably the same sentiment at play for Vanilla Protagonist heroes. Gotta make them relatable, because if they're too interesting and have things like "personality" and "depth" then audiences can't connect!

IIRC Gunn even said something like "Forget any other heroes from Earth like those Richard Rider, Sam Alexander or Heather Douglas fellas. The only human face the cosmic MCU needs is Quill."

But..... One of them is named Dick Rider!

Denying us that is just cruel.

Yeah I really dislike this line of thinking.

Give me an interesting protagonist over a "relatable" one any day.

Yes, because Kanye wore contacts this one time, he has clearly lost touch with his blackness. Thank you, random jackass on Twitter. Seriously, were there actually people whining about this on Twitter? Because, this... is... just dumb. Just fucking dumb.

x7 Really, after Daniel Craig threatened to slit his arm if he has to do another James Bond film? Still, my overall point is that Idris Alba's career is not being reduced to "put on make up and play an alien" just because he's doing so in his next movie. Nor should we see this as a emerging trend in Hollywood that's going to reduce all actors of color to "put on make up and play an alien" just because three other actors are doing the same thing.

edited 15th May '16 3:06:34 PM by rjryan3

Also, I feel like I need to defend the Futurama writers. Philip J. Fry hasn't been the "white human character that the audience can relate to" since episode six.

(Off-topic, is there a glitch that's preventing us from linking to the Futurama page?)

Thank you!

edited 15th May '16 1:57:57 PM by rjryan3

You link to it like this: ''{{WesternAnimation/Futurama}}'' = Futurama.

On another topic, Ava DuVernay and Jennifer Lee's casting calls for their adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time.

edited 15th May '16 1:47:19 PM by Tuckerscreator

When it come to protagonist, one can be relatable,intersting or charming, tony stark is not relatable but chaming and burce way is more intersting than relatable, the problem of course is the same hollywood always have: to much rigid when it come to the formula

Eh...I am NOT sure how I feel about that. For "A Wrinkle in Time" it doesn't make much of a difference, but for one of the sequels the IRISH and NATIVE AMERICAN heritage of Calvin is kind of important. Really important in fact. And for one of the spin-off books, the fact that the twins are WHITE and travel into the time of Noah, where the fact that they look different from everyone else is an important plot point.

In addition, this is a story about children who "don't fit in" because they think different then everyone else (basically they are super smart and their peers have trouble to deal with it). I am not sure if those changes won't muddle the waters a lot, making it seems like they are shunned because of racism, especially if that particular director is doing it. She has her own agenda, and I fear that it might ruin the project in this case. Which would be a shame, since the books are really, really good. (though I like the second one better than A Wrinkle in Time).

edited 15th May '16 2:05:18 PM by Swanpride

Depends on if they'll even adapt the sequels. The first one was required reading for me in junior high. The sequels weren't.