Let’s not forget this simple aspect:
Interesting character - Seasoned Actor
Interesting character - Seasoned Actor
Interesting character - Seasoned Actress
Interesting character - Seasoned Actress
Interesting character - Just some Chick
In the end studios want money above anything else. And big names rake in bigger money.
I feel like characterizing Halle Bailey as “just some chick” is disingenuous at best.
…gonna be real honest. Just some chick is actually less of a description than I’d give in this case.
She was in two romantic comedies, I guess? A lotta Last Holiday fans? She wasn’t known for anything beforehand other than one sitcom spinoff, unless she’s a pop star or influencer or something, in which case… lol?
Most of the people on the list have been successful actors/actress longer than Halle was alive.
I feel like there’s a lot of cherry picking here too, because if we take the MCU, it also does some race swapping that nobody has a problem with.
Nick Fury is one, but Samuel L Jackson is so cool in that role, it doesn’t matter.
Heimdal is another one. Norse mythology, probably not a lot of black there, but Idris Elba is also so damn cool in the role that it does not really matter, and I’ve never heard anyone complain about these people.
I think in general it’s more about if the people in the roles do a good job or not. Tilda Swinton did a great job. Johnny Depp… Maybe not so much, but I also do remember people were mad about that one.
Fun fact about the Lone Ranger, the most likely real world basis for the protagonist is a man named Bass Reeves. He was black, and an escaped slave. The misrepresentation has been present since the beginning, if I’m not mistaken.
Why do they only replace characters with red hair?
Many people in ficiton have red hair, but it’s a very rare trait in real life, so they figure “hey, since we can’t make this character look accurate, let’s not even try.”
