Halle Berry though… 🤔
Kevin Hart.
Would have been a better role than catwoman
I’m a top exec for a very big movie company and I hear you on this. No more Julia Roberts. Got it. Roberts out, Catwoman in. …
Someone get me Michelle Pfeiffer on the phone. I have a great idea, Catwoman as Harry Tubmen.
That’s an Oscar winner, right there.
Martin Lawrence would rock it in “Big Tubman’s House”
I’m going to hell for this upvote.
Oh god, it’s real.
Look up who Alec McGuiness played in Lawrence of Arabia.
Or look at Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Or Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra. Or John Wayne in Gengis Khan.
Or Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra.
Cleopatra was by ancestry mostly Greek. So I don’t get what you mean.
Most of her subjects weren’t quite “black” either.
Sorry for this interjection, but I hate wrong corrections, especially when they give up cute chains of thought like “queen of (hellenistic, that’s my own addition) Egypt -> Egypt’s in the African continent -> black”.
Yeah, the thing a lot of people seem to miss is just how major of a geographic barrier the Sahara is. As a consequence, northern Africans weren’t generally very black for most of history.
I never said she should’ve been black. But some milktoast British lady is still several shades lighter than any Egyptian in history.
Greek and ME people sometimes look very light. And face powders too exist.
So I wouldn’t say there’s anything too weird with her appearance. I suppose portrayal of Americans in North Korean war films is weirder.
Or Emma Stone in Aloha, or Max Minghella in The Social Network, or Tilda Swinton in Doctor Strange.
So it was 30 years ago. I feel like, even though things are far from perfect now, nowadays a comment like this would draw quite a few more critical looks than back then.
People in 1994 knew exactly how fucked this was.
Sure, but knowing how fucked something is and actually speaking out about it are two very different things.
Why would you think that? I was around in 1994, and if anything, it got worse.
No, sorry. Go watch any sitcom from the nineties. There is a lot of stuff in there (racism, sexism, homophobia) that would cause a shitstorm these days.
Maybe you lived in a progressive bubble back then (good for you) but as someone born in the nineties who grew up in the early 00s, I have to say, ignorance was a lot more tolerated back then, even in the 00s.
So you’re looking at an era that you probably don’t remember actively being a part of, and you compare it to the world you do remember. I don’t think I was the one to live in a bubble*. Also, have you seen Musk do the Hitler salute on television? Nobody tried pulling shit like that in 1994.
*I lived, and still live, in a very rural area, which is not know for being progressive.
100%.
It was also 30 years closer to Harriet Tubman, in a time when black civil rights were not even as sanded smooth as they appear now.
Bruh we’ve got a Nazi president
And he’s fucking everyone instead of just black people. We had a DEI program to rollback again. If someone calls me the n-word, I can post that on Tiktok and have a
5040% chance of getting them fired.Shit’s bad but shit’s almost always been bad for black people in America, so you mark the little peaks.
It’s such an insane story that I wonder what the other side of it is. It’s easy to imagine the guy just having got out of a meeting ten minutes earlier with “if you don’t get Julia Roberts into a movie by the end of the week, I’ll see you never work in this town again!” ringing in his ears.
Same as when SNL wanted men to play female politicians in sketches when Amy Poehler and Tina Fey were right there and smashed it in the end.
SNL is comedy, and there’s comedy in using a man to portray a woman. That’s not the same as using the wrong sort of person because you think it doesn’t matter
Ok, you choose a man instead of Tina Fey to play a Sarah Palin and see how much funnier that won’t be.
I choose Alec Baldwin
Hollywood Executives can collectively only name at most seven actors at a given time. An entire nine-digit annual industry run by a bunch of coked-up goldfish.
All of these large industries are run by idiots
They’re run by the same average people who work for them. You don’t need to be an idiot to fuck up running something as large and complicated as a trans-national corporation. You don’t need to be a genius to coast in a position that already prints money.
We’re simply not that different from one another. The genius/idiot dichotomy is far more about variances in education, culture, and propagandized bigotry than finding actual differences in intellect.
This is crazy, I mean Roberts is from the South and Tubman from the north, no one’s going to believe it!
True! It’s called acting for a reason.
Howdy y’all- cough cough Hey youse guys. I’m walkin’ 'ere!
This is obviously a perfect role for Ryan Gosling
I think he is already scheduled to star in the MLK movie, so not sure he would have the time
AI Morgan Freeman
Why AI? Wtf, you made me think he died. Don’t do this to me.
Sorry, I meant “motion capture Morgan Freeman”. Harriet Tubman would be CGI of course.
Hmmm so you need woman of colour? Maybe Gal Gadot? /s
Especially fucked seen as it sounds like negligence.
If Hollywood ever did a film about Gaza they would unironically use Gal Godot in the role of a Palestinian woman.
No doubt with lines like “They only hate Israel because of their religion” and “The IDF is protecting me, despite being Palestinian”
“Israel is saving Palestinians like me from the Hamas terrorist regime”
It also be “both sides have something to learn from each other!” Oscar bait a la Crash or Green Book.
I was going to suggest that it would be done with lots of tearful emotion, but then I remembered that Gal can’t actually act, so maybe it would be more of a “after saying the words, turning and looking towards the horizon in an heroic pose” medium shot moving into a panorama showing little children in the background.
(With the right music to pull people’s emotional strings, obviously)
Ughhhhhhh. Green Book was okay, I liked it, but BlackkKlansman was right there. I shouldn’t be surprised they picked the less punchy of the two, but I’m still annoyed.
Tbh - if you do any academic study of history, that’s what it all starts to look like.
I tried to watch Spartacus because Kubrick and… I couldn’t. Those fucking hairdos. The depiction of Marcus Aurelius in Gladiator upset me - like no, the man was not a proto Thomas Jefferson (and even the IRL Jefferson was made his money on child slavery and raped children.) Wuxia is so much fun but there’s never going to be a period accurate Three Kingdoms (which is a 14th century novel anyway)
Medieval history especially…. That’s pages and pages, and I’m not even really that much of a medievalist.
Medieval history especially
At least we have Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
pretty much any ‘historical’ movies are completely unwatchable to me
I do historical reenactment, so I have a hobby that involves researching the age of a certain embroidery stitch, for example.
I’ve learned to just switch off that part of my brain for games and movies, or I’d cry a lot more. I just project them to an alternate reality where they totally had nylon in 1200.
Pre medieval knitting bothers me immensely. Stockinette is too recognizable and too taken for granted to not be driving me crazy constantly.
I’ve got this rough theory that we can get decently historic pieces from around 50 AD (but only in central italy, nowhere else), around 1200, 1800 and then from 1900 to now. Everything else is even more of crapshoot.
Anything between Commodus and Charlemange is especially cursed
Tbh - if you do any academic study of history, that’s what it all starts to look like.
Even without academic studies - I wanted some context for Tolkien (analogous periods\events), Walter Scott, Dumas, who not. And I wanted some context for R:TW and M2:TW games, so I found mods like Europa Barbarorum. And eventually I’ve read some of Icelandic sagas, and some of medieval poetry translations, and so on. Same with context for fantasy books, some alternatives IRL.
So, after that, there’s just nothing on screen I can watch.
Icelandic low-budget movie kinda associated with Beowulf, but making Grendel a neanderthal (yep), looked cool due to seemingly authentic buildings and weapons and clothes and everything. But it wasn’t a very interesting movie.
I’ve seen a Danish low-budget movie “Eagle’s eye”, some things felt like fine, but again, the story itself just didn’t seem right. Except for the one-eyed guy seeing through the eye of a bird - eh, I dunno why it was an eagle and not a raven, but his relation with the king and with the bishop seemed an interesting allegory on heathenry and christendom.
Roman empire - just leave me alone.
like no, the man was not a proto Thomas Jefferson
The man also, when he found out his wife had a lover, made her a bath filled with his blood. That was in his youth, but.
At the same time he called her “so meek, so simple-minded, so kind” when thanking gods for her.
He became very wise by the end of his life, but, eh, not in US founding fathers’ direction. More like Obi-Wan Kenobi made emperor.
Completely unrealistic and understandable. Suit needs to be tan.
Don’t forget his choice in condiments.
Take it easy man, we do not want to over stage Citizen Kane, here.
Mr. Tan Suit would win best supporting actor, AND best costume design, by itself.
World’s first white first black president.
Removed by mod
The average Hollywood executive is really dumb, but they tend to be great talkers and networkers.
they tend to be great talkers and networkers
This is selling them a bit short. They’re also generally pretty good at raping aspiring actresses.
All of them?
In fairness, many Hollywood actors and actresses are really good at being aware that is happening and yet keeping all their mouths sealed shut while the raping is happening, and for decades. And then pretend to be shocked once the shit comes out. Guess, that is called: Acting.
Pretending she didn’t know anything about it may be Oprah’s best acting outing in her career in the businesses.
Tyler Perry?
Fun story - I went to a troubled teen facility, and we had “group.” There was no actual qualifications required for the people running “group.”
We watched Tyler Perry movies. (Also at one point Ip Man which is a goated film.) I learned the phrase “give head” or similar while watching How Did I Get Married. I was asked to think about the lessons that this movie could apply to my interpersonal relationships - I had never considered how the frequency of oral sex would decease after marriage.
It’s weird how the reverse is somehow ok now. Anne Boleyn played by a black woman why not? Historical accurac? What even is that?? .
Because people aren’t depicting Jesus as a white Caucasian male?
If the skin colour isn’t relevant to the story, it doesn’t matter. If it is relevant, it does.
So I can hire Toby McGuire to play Sammy Davis jr and nobody will be mad?
Jesus was a Palestinian, so it’s ok to take Arab jobs and give em to black actors? Cleopatra was Greek/arab so I guess they can take their roles too.
It’s funny how everyone who isn’t black is suddenly white when it’s convenient. This isn’t black actors taking the roles of white Americans, it’s black actors playing Egyptians, Greeks, arabs, latinos, Asians. Are all those people white??
White people were never opressed and there is no danger of erasing white people and their achievements from history, so yes, the reverse is very ok.
As someone loves history, it’s not ok. Especially when the “white” people being erased aren’t even white. Cleopatra wasn’t white but she’s sure as hell wasn’t black. A lot of the characters being turned black are Greek, Latino, Irish, Italian, Arab, Asian. So is that ok? For a black actor to get the job of every other race? Why not a blank woman playing pancho villa? Maybe get idris alba to play the Dali lama.
You are trying and failing to make up drama where there is none. So again, for you:
It’s not okay for a white person to play a black person from history.
It’s very ok for a POC to play a white person from history.
Deal with it 🤷🏻
This works when you’re being cheeky about it, like with Hamilton. You’re just cherry-picking.
It’s funny how arabs, latinos, asians, North Africans, Italians, Greeks are suddenly “white” when it’s convenient to you.
This works when you’re being cheeky about it, like with Hamilton. You’re just cherry-picking.
See? That is your problem. You and I care about History. The people who are okay with erasing white people based it all on political ideology that is educated on extremely cherry picked and narrow history factoids and examples along with an unhealthy dose of presentism. Sticking with objectivity is not their goal. Most of them are not even aware they are doing that as they are just parroting ideas that others in their echo chambers tell them. I know a bunch of kids at my local Uni who say the same thing and they get it either from the same professors who push the same thing or social media. Primary Sourcing is not something they do as it would prove them wrong.
Erasing the culture is the goal, despite the fact that they blame others of doing what they themselves are doing as a distraction.
How many more comments until you start blabbering about “ThE gReAt RePLaCeMenT”?
What are you talking about? Stop projecting, friend.
Do tell us about this great replacement theory you brought up.
Yes, there are too many Black actors in Hollywood movies. You can barely find any roles for white actors these days. I fondly recall roles where white actors could do their jobs, like Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
It’s funny how Latino, Arab, Asian, Greek, actors are suddenly “white” when convenient.
Right, Samuel L. Jackson as Simón Bolívar was really a bad pick.
Ok where is all this black washing of Asian, arab, latino, etc figures? If anything they get white washed as much as black figures do or are reduced to stereotypes with zero depth.
Only thing that comes to mind is Jada Pinkett’s shitty Netflix series that no one watched
Sounds like you’re being emotional and treating racism like a competition. Can’t really have a reasonable conversation with you if that’s the case
Or you could just give me examples of famous figures of the ethnicities you mentioned being represented as black. I’ve yet to see Miyamoto Musashi, Santa Ana, Buddha, Alexander the Great, or Saladin played by Morgan Freeman or Idris Elba
White people were never opressed
You need to study history then. Even if you mean oppressed in the US your narrative is wrong:
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1206&context=qc_pubs
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/104973239200200205
and so on…
Oh and they were opressed because they were white yes? Like black people were for their “”“race”“”?
They weren’t. You are being silly.
if you have read the articles and studies i posted you would know that, in case of italians, they weren’t considered “white”. But keep parroting your narrative if it makes you feel better about your double standards.
Blocked.
Lmao that was literally my point? But sure, be like that.
It is different, if color of skin is a relevant part of the context of the story. Having John Brown played by a black man would be equally misleading.
For Anne Boleyn’s story on the other hand, racism did not play a part, because it wasn’t even invented yet.
Did… did you just say racism wasnt a thing in 1530s Tudor England?
…ok hol’ up.
racism did not play a part, because it wasn’t even invented yet.
Racism wasn’t invented before 1536, the year she got beheaded? The Portuguese had already transported the first slave ship to Brazil 10yr earlier, even if we pretend there was complete racial harmony before the transatlantic slave trade began, which is an absolutely insane thing to pretend, that still started before her death. Not to mention the fact that racism (and slavery no less) has been around since long before “transatlantic” was even a concept.
Slavery existed previously, and certainly xenophobia did. Those things are as old as time, nondoubt about it. But racism is something more specific: it’s an attempt to use pseudoscience to justify how you can simultaneously consider “all people are equal” (a core belief of the age of enlightenment) while also maintaining stark inequality and slavery (an economic reality of the time).
“Hollywood is crazy. The Last Samurai, staring Tom Cruise…?!”
Hollywood is a cult.
Blueberry pancakes are delicious.
The last Samurai is not played by Tom Cruise. He plays a guy who gets to know and grows to respect the last Samurai and Japanese culture.
Ken Watanabe as Lord Moritsugu Katsumoto, he plays the eponymous “Last Samurai.”
Clearly you have not even watched the damn movie. Or what is your point?
But we are all good with a black woman playing the real life British Anne Boleyn?
Man, can’t wait until we find out which white actor will play Barack Obama in his biopic. I mean, diversity is our strength.
I have watched the movie. It shows a European in a role absolutely impossible in upper layers of Japanese society of that time.
Wrong again, friend. And on multiple counts. Albeit some creative liberties were taken, it was not a biopic after all, Cruise plays a character who is an amalgamation of this guy:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jules_Brunet
And this guy:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugène_Collache
Both fought with the Bakufu and both earned high status, with Brunet achieving even a higher status still, along a position in Japanese society and government.
I invite you to read their wikis, albeit there are better writings on their adventures.
OK, thanks. I sometimes forget to check myself before forming a sentence in my mind.
You’re a credit to .world, you are.
what an incredibly refreshing comment to see online.
Respect++
You’re a real one.
Yeah, Tom Cruise was The First Weeaboo.
So, you missed the link…? Or, just lost your sense of humor in the war?
ETA: when did i say that Tom Cruise was the last samurai…?
1-You had to actually watch the full movie to get any of that context
2-It’s still Cruise’s face front and center on every piece of promotional art
3-As much as I hate that this is true, the vast majority of people who saw that movie did not do so because they heard Ken Watanabe was in it
It’s also not a “white character playing a japanese character” it’s inspired by Jules Brunet.
Also Samurai es plural too, Ken Watanabe wasn’t the last samurai, it was all of them.
- Who is in the habit of starting to watch a movie and like, walk out half way? Most people watch movies from beginning to end. Like what are you saying? People are not supposed to know every plot beat or point in a movie if they have never watched it or read the script.
Did you know that in the Avengers movie, they do not really or actually avenge anything? You would have to watch it to get that, I guess.
-
Uh, so? It was an American production about an American fictitious character, starring one of the biggest, most recognised actors and movie draws of the last 35+ years. Fail to understand the point… Did you know that Japanese movies spotlight Japanese actors/characters on their covers even if the movie is set in the USA or Europe or deals with their culture? Is it incorrect when they do it?
-
Why do you hate the fact that most Americans at the time did not know who Watanabe was? That’s nonsensical. It is not anyone’s job to know actors from other countries. Clearly, the biggest draw was Tom Cruise both in the USA and for the international market, he is still a huge draw, even today. I would say that most of the world did not know who Watanabe was, outside of Japan at that point. I would say that most people may not know who he is even today. Unless you point out the Last Samurai or the Godzilla or Batman movies first. Despite he being in tons of other projects, specially in Japan TV.
You’ve given me a fair bit to think about, but looking at your responses to most of the other comments in this thread, it seems like you’re just out for a good argument. I have no problem with that (within reason) but I’ll be honest, I just don’t have the energy to engage with it today.
Again, you have given me a good amount to ponder, I hope there are no hard feelings. My apologies if I insulted or upset you in any way. I hope you have a good day
Just gonna leave this here. Not sure why the urge struck, but ah well! C’est la vie!
Uh, it’s a free country and neither of us are paying for the server space. Albeit I do not know why you want to be such a white supremacist or focus on that. But c’est la vie. You do you, friend! No judgement.
Maybe add a PIC of Watanabe. But if not, post a bunch more photos of Tom Cruise, his new movie is about to come out! More eyes on the ball, I say. Cheers!
This is the single biggest WHOOSH I’ve seen on the Internet since 2000. You are a legend.
Hehehe.
I mean, they go back in time and save half the population of the universe from being murdered, seems pretty avengeful…
Yeah, no confusion here.
What are they gonna do next? The Last Ni*** on Earth, starring Tom Hanks?
- this is a quote from Chapelle’s show, just to be clear
They should get Lisa Kudrow to play Rosa Parks.
Conan O’Brien as Desmond Tutu.
