Marvel's next films will bring diversity, onscreen and off

only one is set to be directed by a white man.

Anti white racism.

Imagine if a sportswriter wrote something along the lines of 'Calls for more diversity in the NBA. Less blacks please.' The outrage would be nuclear.

Also, pushes for so called diversity in the movie industry are hypocritical and insincere. Do we think the owners and major shareholders of studios are going to relinquish thier money making positions of power to others? Don't bet on it.

@Toasted Heretic

Anti white racism.

Only in the minds of those who feel threatened by diversity.

I strongly oppose racism by whites against other colors. By the same standard, excluding whites is also wrong. Making any judgment of others based on skin color is racist. Two wrongs don't make a right.

We ought to judge people solely by the content of thier character.

Hollywood is garbage. They don't have any original ideas so now they just virtue signal to get an audience. So lame.

uuugh more rehashed super hero movies. new ideas please...

It's good news to let more "voices be heard" as long as the directors are faithful to the comic books and stop the gender-bending and race-bending of characters.

How popular are those movies?

Very much. And for those who complain that the film industry recycles - it's done that since the start.

Sequels, prequels, reboots - its all happened before.

This is just another successful genre, like the Western, the cop movie, the monster movie, the gangster movie, the teen movie, the fantasy, the romcom. It has its audience and those who don't like it don't have to watch.

It means having white characters replaced, and if not, replacing white male characters for women.

Reminds me of that fella who was born in the Middle East (originally a refugee), nice chap, cared about equality, migrants and the poor.

For some reason, he's almost always depicted as a white dude.

I said it has become commonplace for white characters to be ethnically replaced.

Like the Ancient One in Doctor Strange, or Motoko Kusanagi in the recent Ghost in the Shell?

I strongly oppose racism by whites against other colors. By the same standard, excluding whites is also wrong. Making any judgment of others based on skin color is racist. Two wrongs don't make a right. 

We ought to judge people solely by the content of thier character

I agree 100% perfect statement.

So is this a soft advertisement for another Natalie Portman-lesbian scene like the one she did in Black Swan? That will certainly sell tickets.

All that matters is the end product, wait, don’t pay top dollar for an untested product, then make your own judgement.

I liked Ali in House of Cards. He looks like Louis Gossett Jr Jr

Right! It's getting darn right near impossible for white male actors to get roles in Hollywood movies anymore.

Completely missing the point there, bud. I didn't say that white people can't get acting jobs. I said it has become commonplace for white characters to be ethnically replaced.

I would argue that it is getting difficult to make a film with an entirely white cast because of the current climate.

Dunkirk was criticised for not having any characters from minority backgrounds, even though it is based on a real event where 99.95% of the people involved were white.

@Toasted Heretic

This is, of course, blatant paranoid nonsense that has really taken off in recent years as film becomes more inclusive and representative.

'More inclusive and representative' would make lead Hollywood actors demographic make up reflect the U.S. as it really is. See below.

Hollywood execs casting Republicans, Christians, Muslims, (in a good light), Latinos, Asians etc as lead actors? This would definitely not be their idea of diversity. Certain 'privileged' groups are over represented in Hollywood while others that make up large sections of society are made to look as if they don't exist.

They are free to cast who they want. Just spare is the claims of 'diversity' and 'inclusiveness'.

Gender:

Female 51

Male 49

Race:

White 60%

Latino 18

Black 13

Asian 6

Other: 3

Religion:

Christian 69

Unaffiliated 24

Judaism 2

Islam 1 

Buddhism 1

Hinduism 1

Other religions 1

Unnkown 1

Political persuasion:

Democrat 48

Republican 46

Other 6

Sexuality:

Straight 97

LGBTQ 3

Strangerland: counter to the claims of the right, social justice is...

Strangerland: the right often tries to claim...

It's a shame that, when discussing a social issue, some people insist on inserting political labeling and generalizations into the conversation. How about dealing with the dealing with the contents of the current discussion, rather than trying to find a way to inflame large percentages of the population that you have an axe to grind with?

I wonder if the movie studios also considered diversity when it comes to who does their accounting and who makes up their legal team...

Here's an idea for those that truly believe in diversity and originality:

Have Malcolm X played by Ian McDiarmid.

Janelle Monae should be the lead role in every film.

Past sad eras of racism ought to humble us and make us love and respect each other more. It is sad that in an effort to 'right the wrong' some people, like these Hollywood folks, are displaying reverse racism. It is wrong no matter who does it and who it is directed against.

@David

You get the post of the year. Not much left to add to that. I do think Hollywood has way more than enough diversity and it’s a good thing, but to overstate that’s a problem that seriously needs attention is a complete ruse and the diversity you see now is more evident than ever especially on the small screen. Personally, I worry more about Hollywood making quality movies and hiring the RIGHT person for the role as opposed to to hiring a person based on their gender or race for a role because the focus shifts from the story to the individual and more reason why people are turning off the TV.

Multiple: "a white actor can't play a black actor."

Unless you're playing a Klingon in star trek...and preferably are Christopher Lloyd (great scott, I'm commander kruge).

I don't want white actors playing black characters. And I don't want black actors playing white characters.

I want actors/actresses who look like the characters.

Old comics Nick Fury was white, but Samuel L. Jackson made the role his own, so they based the new comics Nick Fury on him

Have Malcolm X played by Ian McDiarmid.

Or Kal Penn, good idea.

Ok, I admit it. Im really looking forward to Blade. I just hope it's not an origin story. Also, Black Widow should be good.

I hate diversity for diversity’s sake. Actors are actors. I love most of Will Smith’s movies and I never really cared about the color of his skin. The race thing never really occurred to me because I grew up watching the Fresh Prince of BellAir. He is a characteristic performer. Period. I think the reason there are not more actors of ethnicity, at least in America, is because they are are a minority and you should hopefully be talented which is a rare trait for people of any race.

Heh these movies are RAKING in the money with their “virtue signalling”, proving that counter to the claims of the right, social justice is more important to the people than the bigotry the right spouts. How popular are those movies?

Nah. Get woke & go broke. Just wait.

Anti white racism.

Only in the minds of those who feel threatened by diversity.

No, it's just anti white racism.

Diversity in films doesn't mean having a diverse range of characters of various backgrounds anymore. It means having white characters replaced, and if not, replacing white male characters for women.

In the 80s and 90s there was a plethora of movies with characters of different ethnicities, but their race was incidental. Now, it has to be the main feature of the character.

Right! A white man cant even get a role these days.

Yes, you are right. It is quite true for some movies. A white actor can't play a black character.

How do you explain The little Mermaid remake and the new Bond film, two current examples of this replacement?

I'm sorry, I didn't realize mermaids are inherently white. I didn't know that monoculturalism exists under the sea.

As for the new 007, you do realize that Bond will still be Bond, right?

I didn't see any fuss when the quintessentially British character was played by an Irishman.

How do you explain The little Mermaid remake and the new Bond film, two current examples of this replacement?

Seems you're saying that white people should have been chosen because they are white.

While complaining about other races being picked because they are that race.

You are not very good at addressing the points in a discussion, are you?

The story was written in Denmark in the early 19th century. Of course, the ethnicity is not stated, but it was unlikely to have been anything other than white. Then you have the animated movie which everyone is familiar with. On top of that, you have countless white women playing the part of Aerial in Disney theme parks around the world.

No one is saying there cannot be black mermaids. People are saying it's a bit too on the nose to change Aerial's race when it doesn't need to be.

Looking forward to your well thought out, short, strawman comment.

Have Malcolm X played by Ian McDiarmid.

You don’t think it’s weird having a white person play someone who was black in real life?

That said, I watched a bunch of people with various accents play Russians in Chernobyl, and it didn’t take me away from the story after I got used to it after a few minutes, so who knows, with the right actor maybe I wouldn’t notice they were white even playing Malcom X.

But as an idea it seems strange.

@HJSLLS

What Marvel sees a need to do is continue diversifying its actors and the types of roles they play to counter the generations of biased role casting. I’m sure we can all grasp that.

You don’t think it’s weird having a white person play someone who was black in real life?

In the name of diversity, especially on the big screen it doesn’t matter. Daniel Day Lewis played Lincoln and he’s not even American.

That said, I watched a bunch of people with various accents play Russians in Chernobyl, and it didn’t take me away from the story after I got used to it after a few minutes, so who knows, with the right actor maybe I wouldn’t notice they were white even playing Malcom X. 

But as an idea it seems strange.

Yes, but these are the times we are living in now.

@strangerland

You don’t think it’s weird having a white person play someone who was black in real life?

Not really. Black actors play people who were white in real life. Here's an example of BAME actress Sophie Okonedo playing Margaret of Anjou

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viedYUe85E0

That said, I watched a bunch of people with various accents play Russians in Chernobyl, and it didn’t take me away from the story after I got used to it after a few minutes

Last time I checked, Russians are white. Guess you could argue the actors weren't Russian, but it's not like they are a different ethinicity.

I think it's a good idea for a white actor/actress to play a black historical figure. That way, it would show true diversity, and that race isn't important when portraying someone. It would also put an end to speculation that diversifying characters is only a one way street.

i really enjoyed the marvel movies i hope they make more

or Motoko Kusanagi in the recent Ghost in the Shell?

For the millionth time, learn your source material. Motoko Kusanagi in the anime, and the manga it was based on, was a cyborg in a 100% artificial body which was specifically designed to look Caucasian.

As for The Little Mermaid, to me it just seems dumb to change the look of such an iconic Disney character and I don't blame some people for being disappointed that she doesn't look like the character that they grew up with. Now, if you don't like the casting choice because you just don't like black people, then yeah, you're stupid.

They will not stop and be happy until white people (the majority in any nation they inhabit) are banished from the media competely, 

Ah, the White Replacement variant. At a cinema near you!

This is, of course, blatant paranoid nonsense that has really taken off in recent years as film becomes more inclusive and representative.

The narrative is that because we appreciate seeing our "own kind" up there on the screen and being portrayed in a positive way, we are somehow out to rid cinema of any trace of whiteness. That, enduring stereotypical/negative representations over the years, we should just have accepted the status quo.

Except that Clint Eastwood (well known white Republican and heterosexual) is one of my favorite actors. Along with fellow Republicans, John Malkovich and James Caan.

I find it interesting that you brought up the recent casting choice for The Little Mermaid.

Only around 6-8% of the world's population is white. Of that 6-8%, redheads are an extreme minority. For the sake of equal representation, why would they change the ethnicity of an already under represented group? There was no need, and that is the point.

@Strangerland

........reverse racism does exist.........But that said, the degree to which it happens is hardly that to which the right often tries to claim it does.

Perhaps you'll reconsider your opinion of the degree of racism and exclusion in Hollywood after looking at my earlier post outlining what true diversity would look like.

Not to mention that it is common knowledge that a very large percentage of Hollywood owners and power brokers are from a single ethnic group that comprises only 2% of the U.S. population. I don't foresee them willingly diversifying any time soon. Nor would I expect them to. Just spare us the lies about diversity and inclusion.

Moderator: Readers, please stop bickering.

The story was written in Denmark in the early 19th century. Of course, the ethnicity is not stated, but it was unlikely to have been anything other than white.

Exactly. So now we all know that mermaids are white! Black mermaids - we all know they aren't real!

'More inclusive and representative' would make lead Hollywood actors demographic make up reflect the U.S. as it really is. See below.

Hollywood execs casting Republicans, Christians, Muslims, (in a good light), Latinos, Asians etc as lead actors? This would definitely not be their idea of diversity. Certain 'privileged' groups are over represented in Hollywood while others that make up large sections of society are made to look as if they don't exist.

They are free to cast who they want. Just spare is the claims of 'diversity' and 'inclusiveness'.

*Gender**:*

Female 51

Male 49

*Race**:*

White 60%

Latino 18

Black 13

Asian 6

Other: 3

*Religion**:*

Christian 69

Unaffiliated 24

Judaism 2

Islam 1 

Buddhism 1

Hinduism 1

Other religions 1

Unnkown 1

*Political persuasion**:*

Democrat 48

Republican 46

Other 6

*Sexuality**:*

Straight 97

LGBTQ 3

Okay, let's take a look at that, shall we?

From 2015:

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/30000-hollywood-film-characters-heres-many-werent-white

It shows that.... 73.1% of actors in movies were white. Every other group you listed is underrepresented.

From 2018:

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/feb/12/hollywood-diversity-has-improved-study-shows

The Annenberg Inclusion Initiative analysed the 100 highest grossing filmsreleased in the US in 2018 and found that 40 of them contained a female lead or co-lead, compared to 32 in 2017, and 33 in 2018.

So don't worry, guys. Even though you're only 49% of the population, you're still 60%+ of the leads in Hollywood.

That doesn't even take into account the number of films that have pointed out what kind of roles certain groups get. You want a techie secondary character? Sure, an Asian guy's fine. Hollywood's filled with techie Asian guys, or martial arts guys, or computer-savvy martial arts guys.

An Asian male love interest, though? That's as rare as a black mermaid.

You're of Arabic descent, or 'look' Arabic? Get used to wearing headgear and playing the bad guy, buddy. Because other than working with James Spader, you're not going to get a role on the good guy side.

And a woman? Even now, with as you pointed out 51% of the population being women, the vast majority of female roles tend to fall into either love interest, helpless damsel in distress, or sidekick. It literally shook this page when Brie Larson played Captain Marvel, to the point there were threads after threads after threads about how it was terrible, how 'woke' it was, how Marvel was going to lose their shirts....

Some folks need to get their heads out of their bubbles.

It surprises me that so many postings on this forum are oblivious to the decades of Hollywood discrimination in role casting. Until recently, women were almost never cast in roles of power, and those identifying as other than ‘white’ were typically cast as the villains who were killed off in the film. Hollywood has even made it common to replace Asian and Middle Eastern characters with actors identifying as white (provided the characters were the heroes). Historically, Egyptian characters were always played by actors identifying as white, even though Egypt is very much an African nation. If this is the Hollywood you wish to continue, you are complicit in the industry’s longstanding discriminatory practices.

And in terms of changing character gender and skin color, Marvel has been doing that successfully for some time. In the comic book back in the 80s, Captain Marvel, identified as a white male, died and was resurrected as a female identifying as black. Nick Fury was portrayed as a white character in the comics before being portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson (who identifies as black) on screen. What Marvel sees a need to do is continue diversifying its actors and the types of roles they play to counter the generations of biased role casting. I’m sure we can all grasp that.

@HJSLLS

What Marvel sees a need to do is continue diversifying its actors and the types of roles they play to counter the generations of biased role casting. I’m sure we can all grasp that.

Agreed! How about more of the following cast in positive lead roles to truly reflect U.S. society as it really is....

Republicans

Conservatives

Christians

Southern state Americans

Muslims

Buddhists

Latinos

Etc.

Unfortunately I'm not hopeful.

Last time I checked, Russians are white. Guess you could argue the actors weren't Russian, but it's not like they are a different ethinicity.

What does ethnicity have to do with someone’s accent? I’ve heard people of the same ethnicity have multiple accents.

My point was they were a bunch of characters supposedly Russian, speaking with British and other accents. For someone not of those areas, their accents stand out as distinguishing as race, and yet after a short time where I thought it was weird, I got used to it. So I could potentially get used to it.

I think a mark of a great actor would be the ability to play a real person of another race so well that I forget after getting into the story. I don’t have the same requirement as another poster who is more concerned with their appearance than their acting ability. If they only look like the person but don’t get me believing their authenticity, I’ll just end up not watching the movie.

If an adaptation of a children's film about a fish lady who has an argument with an octopus over the blandest love interest in history where the mermaid - a creature which doesn't have a race or ethnicity since it's fictional and doesn't actually exist - is your biggest problem and is ruining your childhood, then I must say I'm envious of your idyllic childhood and charmed life.

Apropos of nothing, Santa is black and gay.

In a recent poll of 100,00 moviegoers between the ages of 16-34, the two most popular elements that would encourage them to buy movie tickets were:

virtue signalling

45-minute long fight scenes between two dozen characters flying around and shooting purple laser beams at each other simultaneously

I strongly oppose racism by whites against other colors. By the same standard, excluding whites is also wrong. Making any judgment of others based on skin color is racist. Two wrongs don't make a right.

I fully agree with the content of this quote. And reverse racism does exist, in spite of the ridiculous claims that some people out there make that you cannot be racist against the group in power.

But that said, the degree to which it happens is hardly that to which the right often tries to claim it does.

Diversity in films doesn't mean having a diverse range of characters of various backgrounds anymore. It means having white characters replaced, and if not, replacing white male characters for women.

Right! It's getting darn right near impossible for white male actors to get roles in Hollywood movies anymore.

Yes, you are right. It is quite true for some movies. A white actor can't play a black character.

It's just not fair.

Perhaps you'll reconsider your opinion of the degree of racism and exclusion in Hollywood after looking at my earlier post outlining what true diversity would look like.

Yes, I agree. It's almost impossible for white men to get roles in Hollywood anymore. How can anyone not see that this is the real problem in Hollywood?

Heh these movies are RAKING in the money with their “virtue signalling”, proving that counter to the claims of the right, social justice is more important to the people than the bigotry the right spouts. How popular are those movies?

it has become commonplace for white characters to be ethnically replaced.

Right! A white man cant even get a role these days.

Anti white racism.

Only in the minds of those who feel threatened by diversity.