In regards to "Avatar" casting:

[k_puff]

Amidst all the anger and outrage I'm seeing over the recent Avatar casting, I'm just going to come out on a limb here, throw myself to the wolves, and admit that my initial reaction was:

"Oh. Hm. Okay."

Sure, I can understand how some people are angry and disappointed, like a_white_rain:"if you are thinking of offering up rationalizations for this creative decision - some thought or argument that makes it okay - don't. Don't do it. Keep it to yourself; post it to your own journal; keep it away from me. There is no acceptable defense." But in my opinion this very denial displays a noticeable lack of realistic thinking.

Because, honestly? What did you expect? Really? -_-;; This movie is not being made for the 18-30 demographic, the one who sees this show and recognizes its depth and significance, its brilliantly written characters and it's true message about the hope of humanity. This movie is, and has always been, planned for the 8-14 Nickelodeon Age Group, the one that watches Hannah Montana and buys Zac Efron pillows. The production company does not want to make a Great Movie, they just want to make a Good Movie, one that they know will sell to a specific group and make a specific amount of profit. Entertainment is a business, not a service.

They're not going to take a chance on new, unknown Asian child actors. They're not going to take a chance on the gritty, heartwrenching storylines. They're going to have kids running around, throwing water and rocks at each other and eventually save the world, defeating evil grownups. Because that's what they recognize, that's what they see in this cartoon, and that's what they know will sell. It's a business. They don't care about the integrity of the show.

So if you were expecting, or even hoping, for some suitable representation of this wonderful, amazing show, then I'm afraid I'm going to have to call you naive. Because where we see a work of storytelling and emotional genius, all they will ever see is a kid's cartoon, and to expect anything more out of them is just ridiculous.

And the petition? A good gesture, but futile. You can rant and rave about it being offensive all you want, and it won't do any good because the execs know what I know: whether they cast Bi Rain or Jesse McCartney, every name on that list is a person who is a fan of the show, and at LEAST 50% of them, probably even more, won't be able to resist going to see it even if they *absolutely know* they will hate it.

Sorry to say it, but its true. They're not making an Avatar movie, and they never have been. They're making a Tween Movie, so just come to grips with it and roll with the punches.

Comments

[avi-via-vai.livejournal.com]

For me, the outrage is that the cast is essentially all-white; I was expecting it for Aang an Zuko certainly, but Katara and Sokka? Not so much. These days we're supposed to be about 'ethnic diversity' in the media, which the movie's source does have, and then this happens? Yeah, um, no.

I'm sneaking in to watch it either way, just because I know it will be hilariously bad.

*impressed*

[zombres.livejournal.com]

You rock, Deb. *Fist pump*

[haro.livejournal.com]

I don't think that anyone expected the movie to actually be that good tbh. But the casting is offensive, and nothing can change that.

They're not going to take a chance on new, unknown Asian child actors.

But outside of Jesse McCartney, the entire cast is total unknowns (and why not ask someone like Rain to be Zuko, if they demand some level of star power?). Two of them have had small roles in movies, but that's it. They're Hollywood nobodies. So the only difference between this cast and a cast of appropriately diverse actors/actresses is their culture.

[k-puff.livejournal.com]

I disagree. Jason Rathbone is now widely known as Jasper from the Twilight movie -- exactly the type of tween demographic producers will be aiming for. Young boys will go for the fighting and the explosions, and young girls will go for the heartthrob they associate with the Twilight saga.

(I'd like to put a disclaimer here to say that I know kids are not as dumb, preditable, and easy-to-manipulate as many entertainment execs seem to think. However, generally speaking in a nationwide context, they *are* pretty predictable, especially when your only goal is to profit, not make the next Harry Potter.)

As far as the rest of the cast goes, unknowns are cheaper to contract. Rain is getting expensive. And as far as that goes, I would rather that if the main characters are white, then they *all* should be white. I wouldn't want all of the "good guys" to be white and then Zuko to be played by Rain. Imaging the backlash *that* would cause.

[haro.livejournal.com]

Jasper isn't a major role, and he certainly isn't the character people come away from the movie with. I don't think anyone except the two leads in Twilight would be a big draw to a general audience. I don't agree that he's widely known. It's sort of like (speaking of HP), casting Matt Lewis in a movie and expecting him to be a draw for the general audience.

As far as the rest of the cast goes, unknowns are cheaper to contract.

I agree, but again, then why not cast Asian/Inuit unknowns? They're not more expensive.

Rain is getting expensive.

More expensive than McCartney? I'm not saying it needed to be him though. I was just throwing a name out.

I would rather that if the main characters are white, then they *all* should be white.

Right, I was saying that if they needed starpower, they could cast him. I wasn't meaning to imply they'd cast Rain or whatever and then have the rest of the cast be white. I could actually deal with a couple white cast members. What really gets my shackles up most is Katara and Sokka.

[k-puff.livejournal.com]

I don't think anyone except the two leads in Twilight would be a big draw to a general audience...It's sort of like (speaking of HP), casting Matt Lewis in a movie and expecting him to be a draw for the general audience.

The difference is, Neville isn't a heartthrob figure. Jasper is. Granted, not as big as Edward, but even just being associated with the Twilight saga will be enough for some Twihards. Heartthrob figures have a much bigger draw than simply recognizable faces. I mean, we're talking about the foundation of the entertainment industry here! Heartthrobs bring in audiences; why do you think McDreamy was cast in "Enchanted" rather than any other actor? The "Widowed Father Who Finds Love Again" role is not exactly a difficult one. And, back to my original point, we're not talking about a general audience, we're talking about tween Twihards, the age group this movie is being aimed at.

I agree, but again, then why not cast Asian/Inuit unknowns? They're not more expensive.

I didn't want to talk about this in my original comment because I didn't want to be labelled as "racist" and "offensive". But the fact is, to a producer that wants to make a safe gamble, American (or white) unknowns are a safer bet than Asian unknowns, simply because they're American and therefore "more familiar". It's not right, and I'm not saying they should do it, but it is media psychology. Again, it's a business.

[haro.livejournal.com]

Tom Felton would have been a better comparison.

I don't actually think any of the Twilight actors or the Harry Potter actors would be big office draws outside their franchises as of right now. Patrick Dempsey is an A-list star. Jasper-guy is hardly yet even B-list. He would not be a draw, except for maybe the most diehard of Twilight fans who will see anything with one of the actors. And there aren't enough of those to take a bite out of box office. 90%+ of the Twilight viewing audience, just like the HP one, is made up of very casual fans. That's how fandom works. Fandom is only a micro-amount of the viewership of a film.

Again, it's a business.

I get what you mean but business never, ever excuses racism. If they cast Superman as a Chinese guy or something, everyone would throw a fit. But we're supposed to just swallow this because that's how it is? Again, I get what you're saying, but that doesn't mean we as fans should sit down and accept racist casting.

unknowns are a safer bet than Asian unknowns, simply because they're American and therefore "more familiar".

Who says they need to cast non-Americans? I would assume they'd cast Asian-Americans.

BTW, can you totally tell that this discussion is between two former members of Speech teams? XD

[k-puff.livejournal.com]

Tom Felton is an excellent comparison, you're right.

Patrick Dempsey is an A-list star.

Um... really? -_-;; I don't think Grey's Anatomy, as popular and great a show as it may be, really qualifies him as an A-lister. He's been in a couple good chick flicks and TV shows, playing the heartthrob btw, but an A-lister do not those credentials make. He's just got a niche, he knows what he's good at, and he uses that knowledge to get himself employed in some respectable movies and media. I can respect that. But I'm not going to be first in line to defend his acting prowess, that's for sure.

Jasper-guy is hardly yet even B-list. He would not be a draw, except for maybe the most diehard of Twilight fans who will see anything with one of the actors.

Okay, ready for a surprise confession that, I admit, has effected my opinion on this particular casting choice? I LOVED JRath in Twilight. I thought he was hilarious and gorgeous and exactly how Jasper should be. I liked his portrayal of Jasper better than what was written in the books (actually, I never liked Jasper at all in the books, honestly). And I was a bit surprised, but also a bit excited to find that he was cast as Sokka. Because out of all the actors mentioned on the list who I'd never heard of, here was this one name that I recognized and associated with a positive response to his performance.

I am not a Twihard. I am a casual fan (in fact, I almost didn't go to see Twilight because I thought I would hate it, but my friend invited me, so...). Still, I honestly had this initial reaction of, 'oh, now I'm sort of looking forward to see what he'll do'. And you're going to have a hard time convincing me that I'm the only one that has had that reaction. Now, whether or not he'll be able to pull of Sokka's lovable sarcasm and bravado remains to be seen, and I'll be the first to say I'll be a little bit disappointed if he doesn't at least try, but I'm excited to watch him and see the result.

Again, I get what you're saying, but that doesn't mean we as fans should sit down and accept racist casting.

I'm not going to refute this. I still haven't created my own position on this issue yet. I am extremely hesitant to start throwing around emotionally charged terms like "racism" without being fully sure that's what it is, and committing to defend all the implications that come along with using that term.

And no, this is not an invitation for you to try and convince me that this casting is, in fact, racist and harmful. It's a private decision that should be made in my own head.

Who says they need to cast non-Americans? I would assume they'd cast Asian-Americans.

You know perfectly well I meant people who look American. Don't twist my words.

Re: BTW, can you totally tell that this discussion is between two former members of Speech teams? XD

[haro.livejournal.com]

Patrick Dempsey

I think he's ascended to the level of A-list within the last year or so. He's not Will Smith, but he's a pretty big draw for women.

Jasper

Having talked to a lot of casual fans who saw the movie, I haven't really talked to anyone who mentioned him as a big standout. No one has said anything bad about him, but I've not really seen him mentioned.

And no, this is not an invitation for you to try and convince me that this casting is, in fact, racist and harmful.

I do not mean to imply that M. Night is himself, racist. He is Indian-American himself. Nor that the producers/team behind it is racist. I mean to say that the fact that Hollywood feels it necessary to cast this way in order to make money, speaks to me, of a lack of acceptance of diversity and culture amongst American society. And I do think there's a time when business decisions should be not based entirely on money, but what is or is not offensive.

You know perfectly well I meant people who look American. Don't twist my words.

I didn't. I thought maybe you meant actual non-Americans, probably because we were talking about Rain.

P.S.- Matt Lewis, not a heartthrob? :o

[haro.livejournal.com]

Re: P.S.- Matt Lewis, not a heartthrob? :o

[k-puff.livejournal.com]

But in the movies, they don't sell him like the hot hunk of burning love that we all know he really is. (sidenote: GUH.)

What we get is adorkable this:



And, um, I don't know any tween that is going to buy a pillow with that on it.

Re: P.S.- Matt Lewis, not a heartthrob? :o

[haro.livejournal.com]

I'd buy a pillow with it. *loves Neville* XDDD