I support Mia as Kate but Faly as Warren is gonna perpetruate some stereotypes about black men and it needs to be talked about more.
Full offense but Warren cannot be a poc. Warren's whole character in the og game is about how annoying, bland, weird, unlikable, mentally ill, obsessive and overbearing he is. Warren is meant to be that way and to give him to Faly is gonna put some new light on his character in the worst way possible.
Lets think critically about the optics about this and how people arent gonna be happy about a mentally disturbed, black and tall Warren with violent tendencies having a unhealthy crush on a small, white, autistic, shy vulnerable girl like Max. Mind the fact that Faly is like 5'9 and Tatum is like 5'0.
It's gonna seem weird and predatory and Faly should step down before he does some harm and ruins this for everyone.
Uh, absolutely not. What "harm" is a 23-year-old Black man doing just by taking on an exciting acting opportunity? Firstly, you have no idea how his character will be portrayed in the show. What if Warren is queer, for example? I joke all the time that game Warren is "just a dude" compared to Chloe's narrative significance and he could've been written out of the show. But that means the show has the opportunity to rework his character so he can play a different role in it. Esther's casting as Rachel means she has to play a bigger role in the show than in the first game, so why not Warren? This show is an adaptation; give it the chance to show you what changes it might be making to its story and characters.
I don't care for Grahamfield or game Warren, but I assure you, none of the characters in Life is Strange were meant to be depicted as only one trait. If Game Warren really was just a one-dimensional creep, he wouldn't have been a love interest! There's a reason you as the player can choose to kiss Warren as opposed to Nathan, for example. There's no evidence in-game that he was mentally ill, just like Max being autistic is a headcanon, and fwiw, you can't be "annoying, weird, obsessive and overbearing" and "bland."
Multiple interpretations and opinions of characters are allowed to exist. Max can be both a quirky, artistic wallflower and a plain, nosy teenage girl. Chloe can be loyal, passionate, determined, but also selfish, emotionally volatile, and rude. David is a traumatized war veteran, but also physically abusive to Chloe. Some fans see Warren as a sweet, socially awkward teenage boy with a crush, and others find him creepy. If actors like Faly can't take on a role like Warren, what other roles are left? How much does his character's personality and agency need to be sanded down until it's politically correct enough for you?
Not to mention, we only have to look at another game in the Life is Strange franchise to see where your logic falls apart: Life is Strange 2. That game begins with Sean, a 16-year-old, 5'8," Mexican American boy, trying to get with his crush Jenn, a white girl. Is he suddenly "weird and predatory" for this? You have to remember that the first game is limited to Max's POV. Max perceives Warren as dangerous and demanding in her nightmare, and it's a pertinent message on how even the most well-meaning guys can be frightening to young women, which is great. But it's just that: a nightmare. Max also sees Chloe make out with Victoria even though Chloe can call Vic a skank. She also gets a text from Pompidou, a dog. It's not concrete evidence of Warren's true character. He's written to be as flawed, complex, and multidimensional as everybody else.
Claiming that Faly should be denied an incredible career opportunity, especially after the upcoming Buffy reboot that he was set to star in got cancelled, because of your opinion of how his character may be perceived by a subsection of the fandom, just sounds like the other side of the coin of "Warren can't be Black! This is just forced diversity!" criticisms. I believe you need to seriously think about the dynamic you implied: why would Faly immediately look more threatening because he's Black and average height, not even tall? As if Max can't advocate for herself just because she's 4 inches shorter than her game version? Come on, man. It might be concerning if Warren refused to take no for an answer, except he does in the game! You can romance Chloe or neither of them and he will leave you alone. And it's not giving Max enough credit as a woman; she defended herself against the likes of Nathan all the way back in episode 1 and was telling Jefferson to "eat shit and die" while staring imminent death in the face. I think she can handle a boy with a crush, dude.
Your opinion of a fictional character should never warrant wishing that a young actor whom you don't know at all should be fired from a project. Please get a grip.
