It depends on context. Doctor Who is a fictional character. Historical figures are not. It isn’t hard to understand why there are different reactions there.
Scarlet Johansen as the Major in Ghost in the Shell
Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One in Dr Strange
Controversy around characters like Iron Fist
etc
Asian fictional characters often get white washed. Results in protests from minority groups who feel they’re being denied representation in their own culture’s created artwork, and roles in movies/shows – just like how replacing caucasian fictional characters results in protests from groups who feel they’re having their cultural representation in media suppressed by minority interests. But whatever man. Guess those dont count.
The Major is literally a full cyborg, the Scar Jo replacement didn’t bother me too much. The ancient one was a Tibetan monk and China actively tries to repress Buddhist representation.
I know nothing about those particular shows or films. I would expect a US remake of a show or film to possibly do recasts.
Does this upset you? I believe Thailand also did a modern reimagining of Snow White too, with a Thai actress playing the role.
Doctor Who has always been a character who can regenerate and reform by design. They’re an alien species. I’d argue its more important they’re eccentric guile heroes in performance than their sex or race.
So the argument is what, that the white people who had a ‘role model’ for their kids shouldn’t be annoyed that the industry is removing that role model, because race shouldn’t matter. But also that race representation matters, and that it’s important for other races to have representation by taking over the roles of those figures.
It doesn’t upset me, it just doesn’t make sense to me. Like I accept that parents want to have positive role models that ‘look like’ their kids, as it helps kids development. So it makes sense that minority groups want to see themselves represented as such in media, and that they’d celebrate established characters being swapped over to be their race/gender. However, that same line of thinking explains why white people are annoyed that their kids are ‘losing’ role models that ‘look like them’. If you assert that ‘race matters’ (and I accept that it does for kids), then it seems reasonable to be annoyed that those characters are being ‘taken away’ for practically the same reason that it seems reasonable for minority groups to be happy to see themselves represented. If race representation matters for the character and kids having positive role models, than its arguably worse to disenfranchise the larger group of kids.
I mean, we’re busy watching young guys flock to alpha dumbass influencer bros, in part because there are fewer and fewer positive role models for them to look up to.
So the argument is what, that the white people who had a ‘role model’ for their kids shouldn’t be annoyed that the industry is removing that role model, because race shouldn’t matter. But also that race representation matters, and that it’s important for other races to have representation by taking over the roles of those figures.
Regarding Doctor Who, Nguti will not be the Doctor forever. He’s just one of many. Whether or not he was specifically chosen because he’s black or not, I don’t know, but I don’t see any inherent problem with the Doctor being black. Race shouldn’t be core to the identity of the doctor.
I mean, we’re busy watching young guys flock to alpha dumbass influencer bros, in part because there are fewer and fewer positive role models for them to look up to.
I think this is a much wider issue beyond the casting for Doctor Who. I’d argue the general decline of entertainment monoculture in general plays more of a role here than any particular creative decision for remakes or reimagining of TV series and films.
It depends on context. Doctor Who is a fictional character. Historical figures are not. It isn’t hard to understand why there are different reactions there.
Scarlet Johansen as the Major in Ghost in the Shell Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One in Dr Strange Controversy around characters like Iron Fist etc
Asian fictional characters often get white washed. Results in protests from minority groups who feel they’re being denied representation in their own culture’s created artwork, and roles in movies/shows – just like how replacing caucasian fictional characters results in protests from groups who feel they’re having their cultural representation in media suppressed by minority interests. But whatever man. Guess those dont count.
The Major is literally a full cyborg, the Scar Jo replacement didn’t bother me too much. The ancient one was a Tibetan monk and China actively tries to repress Buddhist representation.
I know nothing about those particular shows or films. I would expect a US remake of a show or film to possibly do recasts.
Does this upset you? I believe Thailand also did a modern reimagining of Snow White too, with a Thai actress playing the role.
Doctor Who has always been a character who can regenerate and reform by design. They’re an alien species. I’d argue its more important they’re eccentric guile heroes in performance than their sex or race.
So the argument is what, that the white people who had a ‘role model’ for their kids shouldn’t be annoyed that the industry is removing that role model, because race shouldn’t matter. But also that race representation matters, and that it’s important for other races to have representation by taking over the roles of those figures.
It doesn’t upset me, it just doesn’t make sense to me. Like I accept that parents want to have positive role models that ‘look like’ their kids, as it helps kids development. So it makes sense that minority groups want to see themselves represented as such in media, and that they’d celebrate established characters being swapped over to be their race/gender. However, that same line of thinking explains why white people are annoyed that their kids are ‘losing’ role models that ‘look like them’. If you assert that ‘race matters’ (and I accept that it does for kids), then it seems reasonable to be annoyed that those characters are being ‘taken away’ for practically the same reason that it seems reasonable for minority groups to be happy to see themselves represented. If race representation matters for the character and kids having positive role models, than its arguably worse to disenfranchise the larger group of kids.
I mean, we’re busy watching young guys flock to alpha dumbass influencer bros, in part because there are fewer and fewer positive role models for them to look up to.
Regarding Doctor Who, Nguti will not be the Doctor forever. He’s just one of many. Whether or not he was specifically chosen because he’s black or not, I don’t know, but I don’t see any inherent problem with the Doctor being black. Race shouldn’t be core to the identity of the doctor.
I think this is a much wider issue beyond the casting for Doctor Who. I’d argue the general decline of entertainment monoculture in general plays more of a role here than any particular creative decision for remakes or reimagining of TV series and films.