Mostly in film, the ethnicity or culture of a character doesn’t come into play. Sure, we poke fun at Kevin Costner for being the only Robin Hood without an accent, but for the most part if a character is black, white, yellow, brown or any other colour, race or creed – no one cares.
This becomes more of an issue for an actor playing an existing role. When I say “existing role” I typically refer to comic book movies, but this can apply to any novelization brought to film, tv series adapting to film or video game movie as well. Not that these things should not be considered, but that they are not the first thing I think of when evaluating how I react to some casting news.
Recently the example I will use is that Captain American MUST be played by a card carrying American. Now at the heart of this comment, I would have assumed that any actor regardless of birthplace that matches the presence of this existing character was the intention. But there was a strong sense of patriotism and pride that this role would not be suitable if it was played by an Australian even if he could do a convincing Hollywood American accent and had the buff blond hair blue eyed Steve Rogers look.
The concern wasn’t that an actor could portray the role, but that a bigger picture of their qualities OUTSIDE the role they play would somehow influence their ability to play the part.
For me, I feel that it doesnt matter at all where someone is from, as long as they can do the job. Typically there are some qualities that I personally like to see when an established character is brought to film.
1. The Look.
Clearly this is the first impact. If the iconic roles were being filled by actors that did not fill the physical part at all, this could be a major trigger on the appeal of the film. If Captain America was played by a slim out of shape middle eastern man in a turban and a strong Spanish accent, it just wouldn’t work. Nothing about the appearance of the character, including speech, just would contribute to the the character.
2. The Presence.
Sometimes capturing the pure essence of a character makes it worthwhile. The costumes in XMen make the comic book cool, but they didn’t translate well to the big screen. “Would you prefer yellow spandex?” But it captured the essence of the characters. They had a uniform, and clearly something more stylized than common street clothes that set them apart as the action heroes. It filled the same role in the presentation of the characters without being dead on accurate to the source material.
Michael Clarke Duncan played the role of Wilson Kingpin Fisk. The pure essence of Kingpin was a massive imposing man of influence and power. No doubt, Duncan has these qualities. Many of the purists were upset that he was black. I personally don’t think that this affected the presence of the character at all. Despite being iconic in the Daredevil books, the role was secondary and could get away with this indiscretion to the appearance because he had everything else in spades.
The two qualities I mention can be applied to judge my appeal of any character in a film based on another medium.
The qualities are not a “one or the other” type thing for me, but they do feed off each other. If you were to take a character and hire an actor for him SIMPLY because he looks like that character, you could make some pretty impressive posters, but perhaps not a film. Many professional wrestlers have physiques that were made for the pages of a comic book, but they lack the acting ability to portray the character and nail that presence.
The other side of that coin is that if the character doesn’t look or sound the part in the slightest, no degree of presence would save that role. If the ethnicity is close, or not as critical to the portrayal of the character, it becomes questionable, but can still work. As much as I respect Leonard DiCaprio is as an actor and I have faith in anything they manage to put him in, if he was to be cast as Blade, I just couldn’t get into the character.
The bottom line for me is simply that these people make their living as actors. It is their craft. And by definition, this means they are pretending to be something they are not. They might be an Australian playing the part of a wise cracking LA native in a buddy cop film, but that is not who they are in real life. But they can do the job convincingly enough to make the film enjoyable.
Does it matter where someone is from to play a role? Only if that ethnicity or physical appearance is so drastically different that it impedes the presence.
So who is right for the job? Could be any number of actors. We may have an idea on who we want to see, but I would hope that the reasoning for wanting to see them is based on the proper portrayal of the character or role instead of burdening ourselves with inconsequential details that have no impact on the role.
@Chuck – This Bruno Gioiello has been in the industry for over 10 years and more than half his roles consist of “guy#3” and other nameless titles.
Thats why he isn’t working more. He is average and unnoticable.
Hollywood needs personalities that sell, not bland background guys.
The US isn’t short on Tough Guy Actors, the casting universe is short on curiosity and willingness to see, audition available, new, amazing, strong, tough american actors… If the US is short on Tough Guy Actors — tell me why the brilliant and amazing Bruno Gioiello isn’t working every day. Don’t know him? I wonder why?? Look him up on IMDB He’s a GREAT ACTOR, strong, amazing performer.
Magneto is a buff German who was played by a Ian McKellen who is neither buff, nor German. Who’s gonna argue with that casting decision though?
^^^ yeah but rey relnolds has been a couple of marvel characters already.
and yeah thomas jane would be good but it WOULD look wierd now…sucks.
and BE EARL, i actually think that the captain america suit doesnt even need to be changed, i think that its perfect as it is- its got to have the scales and the leather red boots. the scales make it look so amazing. hes one of the few heros that id like to have his suit untouched in a movie
and rey stevenson is a perfect example of what i was talking about earlier- he is sort of like the punisher when hes not acting, hes quiet and hes tough looking. hes got the characteristics of the character already so it comes easier for him and he looks more like he just got pulled out of the comic book
@BE Earl
Marvel has a policy about recasting actors for more than one hero. Jane did Punisher, so he is likely out. But if they did, I assure you hair dye works more than once.
I guess the only thought I’ve had about casting roles for adaptations of comic-books is that they try to stay as true to the source material as possible. That’s what made the first two Spider-Man films and Sin City so incredible.
However, I didn’t have a problem with the casting for Kingpin in Daredevil. As it has already been said a few times, the role called for a hulking, menacing actor and right now…that’s Michael Clark Duncan. I had more of a problem with the casting of Daredevil himself. Sure, Affleck fit the “look” of Matt Murdock, basically, but he was wrong for the role in so many other ways.
I’m not really looking forward to a Captain America movie. I think the costume is going to look downright silly on the big screen…one of the other problems that the Daredevil film had to work through. But if and when it gets made I won’t have any problem with the casting if the role goes to someone who isn’t American. As long as they can act and they look the part, I will be fine.
Too bad Thomas Jane dyed his hair dark to play The Punisher. He’d be perfect for Cap. Now it would be weird.
I think this is something that has to be considered when filling a role which is pre-existing, such as a comic book or TV adaptation. If it’s a script, you can change the role to suit the cast and it won’t have any effect on the audience because they don’t know what the first draft of the script said about the character.
For a comic adaptation, your actor should physically match the part as much as possible. It’s not offensive or non-PC. It’s just that when you’re filling the role of a large, bald white guy… you should probably be looking for a large, bald white guy. Ethnicity plays a part in who a character is.
In the case of Captain America, I think it’s more of a marketing thing that you need the lead actor to be American. In the film itself, as long as they get the accent down, it’s no big deal. But once you get the actor out on the PR trail, you’re just gonna look stupid if Captain America is speaking with an English or Australian accent. And obviously he has to be a big muscular white guy with blonde hair. It’s not racist or discriminatory, that’s just who Captain America is. Captain America is not black, female, Australian or a midget. He is what he is, and that’s what should be cast. Besides, it’s not like there’s a shortage of extremely talented tall, white American actors for the studio to choose from.
great article….i agree with u on a lot of points….as long as the actor can channel the feel and identity of the characters its fine…..the background of the actor shouldnt come into play unless the character’s heritige is key to their motivations or identity…
wilson fisk (kingpin) is a mob boss who is huge and menacing, but white….duncan (black) was everything the kingpin was in the book and it fit (for me at least)….and i also liked ur example with leo playing blade…
and to those complaining about goku not being asian….in the manga and anime it was never said they were in japan or any part of asia….the characters just spoke japanese because it was made in japan…..
and hazmat the actors name is daniel craig (sp?) and you have a good point…he would make a good steve rogers….good call man
Rodney
Oh yeah man i agree but the action wont be as fictional as ironmans so they cant get away from the bad acting errors as easy (you know what i mean?)
i think that acting is all about playing the role of someone youre not. i dont thing people get oscars from playing everyday roles. so its okay to play the role of a russian if your argentinian. but captain america stands for so much to the other heroes themselves and the fans, that i think itll be nice to pick someone that is kinda like him in real life already.
the rock has that kind of “dont fuck with me” vibe so hes already perfect to play the role of some badass (oh god no not captain america im just making an example) so itll be perfect to pick someone with captain america characteristics- like intimidation. cap intimidates superheros that have powers with nothing but a shield.
um- i dont know if the guy from 007 and the golden compass (im sorry i dont know his name) can pull off an american accent but if he can hed be perfect although i think hes brittish .
Hazmat, dont get me wrong. There will be PLENTY of action in Captain America. Yes he is going to end up being a buff white guy with blond hair. Thats just what he looks like.
No, he does not have to be American. There are plenty of people with a strong command over the english language that could do just as good a job. Just because he isnt from the good old US of A doesn’t mean he cant play Steve Rogers.
i think that sinse captain america has no powers they have to emphesize on everything else.
they have to go the extra mile with cap because they cant show him flying or taking bullets so they have to make the actor american and he has to be intimidating as an actor and look badass 24/7 when hes not acting.
actors are sometimes perfect for a role when they are like the characters they are playing in real life. so i think we should get some american dude that looks scary as it is and not get someone and make them be cap .
this however doesn not imply for characters like goku because there are so many other ways to show his true character like having him throw a spirit ball or simply tell a joke or something. but cap needs to have REAL acting because CGI wont help him as much as it helped ironman and spiderman
and- i have no example for such actor…but he needs to be blonde, buff, american, and intimidating (and known)
@Drew. I often question people who say it was “a race thing” and ask them if he wasn’t human.
Its all one race brother!
I don’t even know if you could consider this a point, but the role of “Red” in The Shawshank Redemption was originally that of an Irish white guy. The fact that Mr. Morgan Freeman took that and ran with it worked incredibly well in the film, and was decidedly SOLID casting.
I appreciate you used the correct term of ‘ethnicity’ as opposed to ‘race’ when writing this.
Will Smith in I am Legend – if the actor is good enough then he can carry his role no matter who he is, even biologically, in real life.
And if this was an American film produced by an Asian studio, released for Asian culture, you would expect them to find white actors for it?
Why does Goku have to be Asian? Goku wasn’t an Asian in the cartoon either. He has a TAIL! Maybe they should have found an actor with a tail! Goku is an extraterrestrial from a race called called Saiyans.
PS – i am painfully white.
well, in the case of the goku being a white guy thing i think it is kind of an insult to asian people, who created the series and made it what it was.
there was no reason to cast a white guy as goku other then to make the film more palatable to a north american audience. none whatsoever. i very strongly believe this.
i think that is bullshit, people should be able to accept a character regardless of ethnicity. goku being cast as a white guy is a studio acknowledging and pandering to thinly veiled racism.