Greetings,
There has been a tendency in an effort to follow certain rules of "inclusivity" of late, to deliberately cast persons various lifestyles and ethnicities in particular roles in movies. In some cases it is simply adding a single representative member from each of these groups in the cast, even as characters to ensure that the movie or series is considered inclusive enough. I have referred to this in the title as "a splash of colour" because it is paying lip-service to inclusivity nothing more.
Word Use
A small note on wording, I am going to use the word ethnicity not race when referring to people of different colour or different cultural background, because it is the correct term to use. There is one race, the human race, we have multiple ethnicities within that race, and multiple cultures within those ethnicities. The more people realise that that they have more in common with one another, the easier it is that they will find ways to work together, so we need to find words to unite us, to take back words to unite us. Racism rolls off the tongue nicely, Ethnicism or ethnicitism does not. Lets kill the word, kill the idea. Make racism against humanity (as it is), not just against one group of humans.
From a Position of Privilege?
First there is going to be the complaint that I am a white male complaining about things in regard to race and sexuality so I am speaking from a position of "privilege" so I have no right to do so. Actually, I do because I watch movies and series, and because I am a human being. More to the point because I will be speaking from the perspective of a minority which often gets forgotten in these casting choices, and often played badly in movies and series, those with mental illness, and those with disabilities, but my discussion of the lack of representation of my minority, and its misrepresentation in movies will come later.
The Token Minority
How many movies and series have we seen of late where there has been the token person of colour, gay male, gay female, and so forth? In this case the casting directors have not chosen these individuals in the cases of those of a particular ethnicity because it was required for the role, but because they needed one to be representative. Or where characters were changed to be inclusive so alternate life-styles were present, and they grated against the original story, especially when they came from an original book or other source. These actions within the movie-making process are an attempt to appease some and make the movie more appealing to others.
Shouldn't the role go to the actor who is the best for the part, regardless what colour their skin happens to be? An example: in the original comic Nick Fury is white. In the Marvel movies he is was cast as Samuel L. Jackson, and he did an excellent job in the role; he suited the part. Jackson held the role, not because of the colour of his skin, but by the skill of his acting. Let the actor who is best suited to the role have the role, regardless of their ethnicity. In picking token roles for people of particular ethnic groups, they stand out more than if they were allowed to be cast and fill the roles like any other.
Misrepresented Minorities
The two minorities which are either misrepresented in movies, or are completely absent are those with disabilities, especially invisible disabilities, and those with mental illness. Yet, there are no great complaints about this misrepresentation, or lack of representation in movies or series. They seem to be swept underneath the carpet, pushed to one side, ignored at best, abused at worst.
Mental Illness
When mental illness is represented in movies there is one of three representations that is primarily present: criminally insane, military PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), and socially inept. For the first group you have characters like The Riddler, Harley Quinn, The Joker, serial killers of different breeds and so forth. Mostly these people are presented as "insane" which has pushed them to be anti-social and criminal. The result of the way mental illness was played on the screen meant that people at large thought that schizophrenia and Multiple Personality Disorder were the same thing, which they are not. Next you have the military PTSD, which is a real problem in our society mind you. The soldier who has come home from war, or who is still in a war-zone, who experiences extreme "fight or flight" responses, or withdraws from society in general. There are aspects of PTSD that are seen in civilian life as well, usually as the result of abuse of some kind, but not always. The final group is the socially inept, Rain Man and Mercury Rising, both show two different perspectives of mental illness, but at an extreme end of the scale, so the individuals always have extreme difficulty dealing with society. These are extreme examples of these conditions, there are also other examples of both of these conditions, milder and with different symptoms. Yet, none of these, even the explanations, are completely representative of mental illness, only a single aspect of it within a single diagnosis.
Disabilities
The first thing that someone will respond with is what about Professor. X? He's in a wheel-chair. Yes, played by a person who is perfectly able to walk, who does not have any idea about what it is like to really be stuck in that wheelchair every day of his life. There are a few notable actors with invisible disabilities, Morgan Freeman is one who has fibromyalgia, these are not represented on the screen. You don't see many movies with a person with a disability in movies. Ivar the Boneless is a classic character from "Vikings", born with a bone defect; are there any others even in the background with physical disabilities? Even as a result of battle? Yet, there is no great complaint about the lack of representation of disabilities being present on the screen, either big or small, even as extras. Well, let mine be the first voice of complaint.
Tell the Story...
The focus of directors should be to put the best cast together so they can tell the best story that they can. They should allow their casting directors to find the actors who are most suitable to the roles which are present in the script, regardless of ethnicity or any other factor. If they need a particular ethnicity of an actor for a particular reason i.e. the movie is set in Africa, they need lots of darker skinned actors, then this should guide their choice. The important thing is to ensure that they have the actors to tell the story.
If a person is going to complain about "inclusivity" and have to ensure that all types of people are included and are represented, they should be at least represented properly, not some token splash of colour. My continued argument to these individuals would be to ensure that they would fight to include people with disabilities as well in their "inclusiveness" because people with disabilities, physical and mental are sure a minority as well. Most of us are happy to be a minority, because it would mean more sick people.
Remember, change the words and things will lose their power. I will reiterate again. There is one human race, there are many ethnicities and many cultures. The more we begin to change the narrative, and change the word, come together, show how we are the same not different, the harder it is to break us apart. A single stick may be easily broken, a bunch of sticks together is much more difficult to break.
Cheers,
Henry.
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