Everyone, it’s time for us to have a little chat about “whitewashing,” and no, I’m not talking about the kind that involves Tom Sawyer and a fence.
Recently, Disney’s announcement of a live-action “Mulan” remake has sparked both excitement and skepticism within the legions of fans that are concerned about rumors of a white actress being selected to play the title role. This is an issue that may seem trivial to some, but ultimately is something that should be taken more seriously in Hollywood.
If we’re going to be completely honest, there are not many quality film roles for minorities these days. That doesn’t mean they’re non-existent, but they’re definitely becoming harder to notice in mainstream cinema, and that’s a problem.
It’s even more of a problem when white actresses are portraying roles that are written for people of color, like Mulan, which is a trend that is becoming more and more prevalent within the media.
Current examples that come to mind are Rooney Mara being cast as Tiger Lily in “Pan,” Scarlett Johansson signing on to play the main character in film adaptation of the anime “Ghost in the Shell” and a majority of the characters in “The Last Airbender” being portrayed by extras that appeared on the “The O.C.”
There are plenty of reasons why whitewashing in film isn’t ethical, but one of the more obvious ones is that it completely erases the culture and history behind some of the characters, which affects the accuracy of their portrayal.
To cast a non-Asian actress as Mulan would just allow someone a chance to play dress-up as opposed to seriously embodying how important the character is to Chinese legend. The same goes for all of the movies mentioned above and for any others that may be released in the future.
A diverse society is one of the things that makes America great. To take away any aspects of that diversity, whether it is in the media or in everyday situations, would make life here a little less exciting and a lot more bland. Let’s hope Hollywood realizes that sooner rather than later.
