The casting of Tilda Swinton, a white actress, in Marvel’s upcoming movie "Doctor Strange" has sparked controversy. Swinton was cast as The Ancient One, a role originally portrayed as an Asian male. Though Marvel originally intended for a male—race unspecified—to play the part, they eventually decided to reimagine the role as a female character. Though this decision may be a step forward for representation of strong female characters in media, it may be a hundred steps back for Asian representation.
In addition to Swinton’s casting in "Doctor Strange," Scarlett Johansson and Elizabeth Banks were also cast in upcoming movies in roles typically portrayed as Asian characters. After outrage at Johansson’s casting, the filmmakers behind "Ghost in the Shell" decided to make Johansson look more Asian by using CGI.
The outrage at these white actresses cast in typically Asian roles stems from Hollywood’s tendency to exclude Asian actors and actresses, and stories about Asian characters in general. Asian Americans are vastly underrepresented in movies and other media, which results in a lack of role models for Asian children and unfair unemployment of Asian actors, actresses, and other artists.
Last week, Twitter spoke up about this problem and its ramifications with powerful tweets under the hashtag #whitewashedOUT:
"#whitewashedOUT means nobody taking our voices seriously. means it is okay to say racist [expletive] to us because who cares? It's just Asians." - Ellen Oh (@ElloEllenOh)
"#whitewashedOUT when I actually struggle with: if I write myself, will I end my career? If I *don't* write myself, will I be a traitor?" - Marie Lu (@Marie_Lu)
"#whitewashedOUT is living in continual fear of never working again for standing up and speaking out" (@AkemiLook)
"POC identify w white protagonists all the time R white people so devoid of humanity they can't identify with POC heroes? #whitewashedOUT" - David Mura (@MuraDavid)
"When my Asian daughter sees only Asian stereotypes in 'fun' films like Mean Girls, Pitch Perfect, Sisters, 16 Candles etc. #whitewashedOUT" - Jennifer Long (@JenLiaLong)
"I worry most about kids, who are absorbing all of these messages about who's really important, whose stories matter. #whitewashedOUT" - Nicole Chung (@nicole_soojung)
It's clear that Hollywood's erasure of Asian stories and underrepresentation is a problem that needs fixing. Inclusion and representation of all ethnic groups are essential because people shouldn't have to decide between their career and telling their own stories, and children should have role models who look like them so they feel like the same opportunities are as available for them as anyone else.
On Wednesday, the director of "Doctor Strange" responded to the tweets by acknowledging the anger and erasure of Asian Americans in Hollywood and by saying, "I am listening and learning." So, while the systemic problem of underrepresentation won't get fixed overnight, it seems the #whitewashedOUT movement has made great progress towards the goal of fair representation.
