#non-traditional casting

[uppastthejelliclemoon]

Here's my gender-blind dream cast for Cats!! I know the actor for Gus the Theater Cat also doubles as Bustopher, so I just went ahead and paired those roles together! If you want to know why I chose a specific actor, feel free to ask!!

@is-it-mungojerry-or-rumpelteazer @queen-with-the-quill

Oldie Squad:

Old Deuteronomy: Amber Gray

Grizabella: Norm Lewis

Jennyanydots: Gavin Lee

Skimbleshanks: Lea Salonga

Jellylorum: Nathan Lane

Gus/Bustopher: Angela Lansbury

Adults:

Munkustrap: Patina Miller

Alonzo: Jasmine Cephas Jones

Tugger: Karen Olivo

Mistoffelees: Eva Noblezada

Demeter: Zachary Levi

Bombalurina: Corbin Blue

Cassandra: Isaac Cole Powell

Plato: Adrienne Warren

Victoria: Kieran Macdonald

Older Kittens/Kittens

Tantomile: Diana Huey

Coricopat: Ali Stroker

Electra: Ricky Ubeda

Etcetera: Sean McManus

Tumblebrutus: Krysta Rodriguez

Pouncival: Carrie Hope Fletcher

Jemima: Shereen Pimentel

Mungojerrie: Haley Kilgore

Rumpleteazer: Jelani Alladin

[technoturian]

So many people getting their undies in a twist about a black Johnny Storm but nobody has a problem with Reed "Silver Fox" Richards being played by a guy who looks fifteen. Okay.

[racebending]

Sources also indicate the reason for the [Star Wars Episode VII casting] delay has to do whether execs and creatives want someone of a different ethnicity from the previous [white] leads. Abrams has said on numerous occasions that he wants to have a diversified cast, which is why actors like David Oyewolo and Michael B. Jordan tested early on. As previously reported, Abrams is expected to surround the less-familiar actor with more recognizable stars for supporting parts, including original “Star Wars” cast members Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill.

Variety reports on "non-traditional" casting being considered for ‘Star Wars Episode VII’: Actors Battle for Lead Role (EXCLUSIVE)

(Well, the main character is still a guy and most of the actors being considered are white with a few black actors and no other POC groups mentioned, but, you know,...non-traditional!  Being considered!  Could be significant!)

[racebending]

I have a question. I too can't stand it when a white actor plays a part that is obviously a person of color (this does happen to Asians a heck of a lot). What do you think when it happens in reverse? Example: Lawrence Fishburne playing Jack Crawford in "Hannibal?" Denzel Washington in "The Bone Collector?" Morgan Freeman as Red in "Shawshank Redemption?" Interesting all of these characters are male. Hmmm.

I think...

...That it's disingenuous and misleading to label this as a "reversal" of whitewashing because the motivations and impact of whitewashing and non-traditional casting are extremely different.  

When characters are whitewashed motivations include the belief that white actors are more financially profitable, the belief that white audiences are inherently racist, the belief that no one will notice or care.  The impact is an even greater reduction in opportunity for roles for actors of color (lead characters of color are rare enough without the extra sting of whitewashing) and an exacerbation this existing disparity.   When an actor of color is cast in a role that is traditionally played by a white actor or a character that may have at some point been white, the motivations for this casting are usually quite different, whether it is equal opportunity casting, a subversion of existing tropes, or a cynical desire to add token diversity.   The impact is also different: Unlike whitewashing's impact on actors of color, non-traditional casting has no impact on the existing opportunities or representations of white actors/characters.  It can, of course, sometimes be deeply meaningful for audiences of color to see representation where they expected none.

tl;dr..I think that people like to use examples of non-traditional casting as proof against racial disparities in Hollywood casting while ignoring greater contexts.

-M

[squircular7]

AFRICAN-AMERICAN ACTOR TO APPEAR AS FRANKENSTEIN’S CREATURE IN THE TALLAHASSEE TLT PLAY

Summer Hill Seven Dedicates Performances As Memorial To Lynching

FOR MORE INFORMATION

[racebending]

Once Upon a Time is adding to its arsenal of new characters for season two. ABC's fairy tale drama has officially cast Teen Wolf actor Sinqua Walls in the role of Sir Lancelot for the new season, The Hollywood Reporter confirms. He has been booked for one episode.