When it comes to filming movies, sometimes casting is done right and sometimes casting is done wrong. It all depends on how you look at it. Sometimes, the biggest fail in casting ends up working out and making that film a success. Or it all comes crashing down and alienating fans of that film or series. It all comes down to how you look at the situation. According to MSN.com writer Brianna Zigler, here are 25 notorious controversies in movie casting.
1. Ghost in the Shell (2017)
-This film, starring Scarlet Johansson, was a live action film based on the widely popular manga series. There was outrage over the casting of a white actress to play the lead role, who was originally a Japanese person. Despite the plot being a Japanese woman being placed into a white woman's body, fans of the manga series still felt this was a slap in the face
-Rupert Sanders, who directed the film, defended the movie. He stated that Johansson was cast based on her popularity. Unfortunately, bad press and criticism almost guaranteed the movie was going to bomb at the box office. This movie did, however, have one good point come out of it. It forced Hollywood to change its policy on "whitewashed" casting. "Whitewash" is a term used when casting a Caucasian person into a role where someone of a different nationality or skin tone is needed. Such as making a person up to look Asian or black or whatever the role needs
2. The Great Wall (2016)
-Despite being filmed by a Chinese director, many felt that casting Matt Damon as a lead role was quite offensive. The film is supposed to take place during the Song Dynasty of China and the lead role is a white actor. Director Zhang Yimou and actor Matt Damon defended the choice of casting. They explained that the film is based in fantasy, not a rewrite of Chinese history. Damon is only one of the five heroes in the film. The other four are actually Chinese
3. The Danish Girl (2015)
-This film is about Lili Elbe, the first person to undergo gender confirmation surgery, also known as gender reassignment surgery. There was serious backlash at actor Eddie Redmayne playing the transgender Elbe. While promoting the film in 2015, Redmayne addressed the backlash while also seeming to avoid accountability. In an interview from 2021 with the Sunday Times, he said he regretted taking the role. "I wouldn't take it on now. I made that film with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake." That same year, his co-star Alicia Vikander said she thought Redmayne gave a good performance, she understood the backlash he received
4. Casino Royale (2006)
-This one seems to really get the blood pressure up on fans of the highly successful James Bond series
-Daniel Craig's version of the iconic "license to kill" 007 James Bond was a far different version than the previous actors who have played this role. First and foremost, Daniel Craig was blonde and blue eyed, rather than the darker features of the previous actors. Not just the fans, but the press also made it an issue that Daniel Craig was cast as the new 007. Most of the actors who have played this role have been the tall, dark and handsome type. Debbie McWilliams, who directed this film, stated "The press response was awful and I felt so sorry for him, but in a funny kind of way I think it almost spurred him on to do his best (substituting profanity) to prove everybody wrong."
-Personally, I like the Daniel Craig James Bond films. They're great. He's giving the role of 007 a modern spin and I think it's great. I'm a fan of the James Bond films and they're all great in their own way. Yes, most of the actors were dark featured, but not all of them had brown hair or black hair and brown eyes or generally dark features. Timothy Dalton had black hair and blue eyes. Roger Moore had brown hair and blue eyes. The only ones who had brown or black hair and brown eyes were Pierce Brosnan, George Lazenby and Sean Connery.
-And for some reason, not a lot of fans of the James Bond series seem to like the Timothy Dalton-era films. The reason his version of Bond is a lot different than, say, Sean Connery, Roger Moore or Pierce Brosnan, is because Dalton wanted to take the role closer to the novel version of Bond. And the two films Dalton starred in featured more violence than the other films. Personally, I like the Timothy Dalton-era films. He was a good James Bond and he was very handsome
5. Nina (2016)
-Zoe Saldana received some serious backlash for her 2016 performance as Nina Simone. Objections to her being cast as the famous musician was revolving around her being a lighter skin-toned black-Latina actress rather than the darker toned black singer that Simone was. Saldana had to modify her appearance to look more like Simone. Which included a prosthetic nose, fake teeth and makeup to darken her skin. This led to Simone's daughter, Lisa Kelly, even criticizing the movie. "My mother was raised at a time when she was told her nose was too wide, her skin was too dark." Saldana admitted in a 2020 interview that she should have never taken this role on
6. The Lone Ranger (2013)
-A lot of people felt it was insensitive casting a white actor, Johnny Depp, to play the role of Tonto. But what a lot of people don't know is that he actually does have Cherokee in his heritage. In order to prepare for the role, Depp consulted with native leaders to make sure he did this role right. He was even adopted into the Commanche Nation as an honorary member in 2012. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer stated the Native American community supported the film. But the bad press was more than enough to keep the film from being successful at the box office
7. The Hunger Games (2012)
-It seems that casting Jennifer Lawrence as the lead role of Katniss Everdeen was doomed. In the story, the character is described as having olive skin, dark hair and gray eyes. Features that Jennifer Lawrence does not have. Some fans felt she should have never been cast as this role. Some fans even felt this should have been a chance for an actress who was not white to take the role. Director Gary Ross ignored these comments
8. Aloha (2015)
-Directed by Cameron Crowe, Emma Stone is an Air Force pilot named Allison Ng. She is of Hawaiian and Chinese heritage. Something Emma Stone clearly does not appear to be. This film received major bad press due to casting a white actress to play someone of Hawaiian and Oriental descent. Crowe made an attempt to clarify the reason he chose Emma for the role. He stated that Allison was supposed to be frustrated at the fact she didn't look Hawaiian nor Chinese. He offered apologies for this, despite the fact it didn't keep the film from having low ticket sales. As a result of this film, Emma Stone apologized publicly numerous times and is now aware of the tradition of whitewashing in Hollywood
9. The Godfather Pt. III (1990)
-Three decades after the original film, director Francis Ford Coppola's daughter Sofia is now a successful director. She is, unfortunately, remembered as having a part in The Godfather Pt. III. She played a teenaged Mary Corleone. Winona Ryder was originally cast, but dropped out due to exhaustion. Sofia stepped in. Francis Ford Coppola only chose his daughter because he felt she was the right age for the character. While being considered partly an act of nepotism, it was a last minute decision. Sofia wanted to help her father, who she described as being under a lot of pressure. In an interview with The New York Times in 2020, Sofia stated "It wasn't my dream to be an actress, so I wasn't crushed. I had other interests. It didn't destroy me."
10. Ghostbusters (2016)
-Many fans feel this new remake, with an all female overhaul, was not that good. Many of the male fans of the film felt this new all female reboot was a desecration of the original with Bill Murray. Harold Ramis. Ernie Hudson and Dan Akroyd. Featuring in the new remake is Kristina Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon. Of course, most male fans of the original movie put their opinions online, leading to major backlash. Most people seem to prefer the original without giving this one a chance
11. The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
-Chris Pratt of the Guardians of the Galaxy and Parks and Recreation fame was cast in this film as the famous Italian red-clad plumber Mario. Social media provided plenty of skepticism as many felt that Pratt didn't have the proper voice acting skills to give Mario his iconic Italian accent. Instead, it sounded like his normal speaking voice. Despite Pratt defending the film, many felt it was less than good when it finally debuted
12. Iron Man (2008)
-It's hard to imagine Iron Man being played by anyone other than Robert Downey Jr. His portrayal of Tony Stark is sarcastic, arrogant and just hilarious. When the film went into production a decade ago, things looked a lot different. Many people felt he was not up to the tough task of playing the role of Tony Stark. Because of his extensive drug addiction history and repeated stints in jail, he was all but blacklisted in Hollywood. Marvel Studios president David Maisel carried out a long, tough fight to prove Robert Downey Jr was the perfect person to play the billionaire tech mogul Tony Stark. Thankfully, the fight paid off. And with this second chance in hand, Robert Downey Jr took the role, made it his own and also made it successful in many ways. It also proved he deserved a second chance, to put the past behind him. Now he is permanently linked with the role of Iron Man
13. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)
-Rather than choose an actor of Iranian descent or other Middle Eastern descent, Jake Gyllenhaal was chosen to play the lead role. Many felt this was a form of whitewashing-using a white actor or actress to play a role of someone in a different ethnic group. This film is based on the highly successful video game series. A decade later, Jake Gyllenhaal revealed in an interview "You're bound to slip up and be like 'That wasn't right for me' or 'That didn't fit perfectly.' There have been a number of roles like that. And then a number of roles that do."
14. Taxi Driver (1976)
-Directed by Martin Scorsese, this film is one of his best known films. Jodie Foster, just in her early teens, played a child prostitute named Iris in 1970s New York City. There was strong criticism about her playing such a mature role. In a 2021 interview, Jodie Foster stated she underwent extensive psychological tests with a psychiatrist from UCLA to guarantee playing this mature role would not leave her traumatized. She was proud to be in it, according to her
15. Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
-Director Jean-Marc Vallee came under fire for having a transgender woman appear in the film. Playing this transgender woman is Jared Leto, an actor most notably known for his role as vocalist for the band Thirty Seconds to Mars. His character was a transgender woman who had been stricken with the AIDS virus. At the time, Vallee had not considered hiring a real transgender woman because he was unsure or believed there were no trans actors. Leo defended himself as best as possible, but to no avail. There was serious pushback about straight actors or actresses playing transgender roles. Another factor of this movie that put it under fire is the lead role of Ron Woodroof. He was portrayed as straight and homophobic, while the real Ron Woodroof was not homophobic and was perhaps bisexual
16. Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
-At the time this film was made, it was not out of the question to take a white actor or actress and put them in makeup and tape their eyes into position to look Oriental. This film is a good example. In this film, Mickey Rooney was made up to look Oriental, specifically Japanese for his role as Mr. Yunioshi. This includes buck teeth, an exaggerated Japanese accent, his eyelids taped into position and yellow makeup. This is a nod to the rather racist past Hollywood had in terms of Oriental actors and actresses
-While it might have been funny at the time, in this now politically correct world, it's considered offensive. Mickey Rooney expressed regret over taking the role near the final years of his life. In 2022, streaming platforms showed this movie without Rooney's role in it. This, unfortunately led to a whole new debate on censorship and whether art should be viewed within a historical context
17. A Mighty Heart (2007)
-In this film, Angelina Jolie plays the role of an Afro-Cuban journalist named Mariane Pearl. There were some serious accusations that Jolie had used makeup to darken her skin. Criticism was strong with this film, and in a 2007 Time Magazine interview, Jolie had been personally defended by the real Mariane Pearl. According to Pearl: "She put her whole heart into it, and I think she understood why we should do this movie. We had something to say that we knew we should say together."
18. The Conqueror (1956)
-There were many controversies with this film. First and foremost, famed Western film actor John Wayne taking to putting on yellow makeup and getting made up to look Asian. Second, this film was such a box office bomb that RKO Pictures went bankrupt. Third, this film was done near a site being used to test nuclear bombs. It's widely believed that a massive number of crew and cast succumbed to death from various forms of cancer due to the nuclear fallout
19. Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
-Superhero fans are fiercely protective of their idols. When something messes with their superheroes, they are quick to come to the defense. When it comes to the movies, responses can be both positive and negative about who plays what role. This was plainly obvious when Ben Affleck was chosen to play Batman, aka The Dark Knight. While being interviewed by Howard Stern, Affleck said he was "hurt" by the criticism. Some of which included fan petitions to get someone else cast. Surprisingly, Affleck was cast as Batman in at least five DC Comics films
20. The Dark Knight (2008)
-It's incredibly hard to imagine that casting Heath Ledger as The Joker was met with fierce doubt. When he took on the role of The Joker, it set the bar high for anyone who took on this role in years to come. His portrayal of The Joker was incredibly close, if not spot on, with the version from the comics. Of course, when the decision to hire Ledger as The Joker became public knowledge, fans took to social media, calling it "the worst casting decision ever made." Jonathan Nolan, screenplay writer and brother of Christopher Nolan, defended the casting of Ledger. Of course, the defense paid off-Ledger made the movie great
21. Music (2021)
-Sia, a world famous pop singer, came under fire for a role she had taken in 2021. That role was that of a director. She had hired Maddie Ziegler to play an autistic woman despite the actress not being anywhere on the autistic spectrum. It's been a recent debate in Hollywood about whether actors or actresses could successfully play those who were disabled, special needs or considered neurodivergent. Many felt that the role Ziegler played was an offensive stereotype. Rather than be productive and handle the situation respectfully, Sia went on to Twitter and gave backlash back to those dishing it out initially. She states the situation caused her severe mental distress. She has issued an apology, but a few years later, Sia came out with the fact she herself is on the autism spectrum
22. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
-Fans of the Batman series were less than pleased to hear that Anne Hathaway, of The Devil Wears Prada fame, was cast as Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman. Comic book fan spaces are a breeding ground for heated opinions and more. Some fans want to know how the characters will look and when they heard Hathaway was cast as Catwoman, they felt she didn't fit their fantasy. Unfortunately, this led to a lot of public hate against Anne Hathaway
23. The Last Airbender (2010)
-M. Night Shyamalan directed the live action film of the popular anime cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender. Unfortunately, the film failed at the box office. Many suspect the reason behind the failure is the casting. The cartoon features those who are of Asian descent. The film featured mostly white actors and actresses. While Shyamalan did defend his "colorblind" form of casting, the backlash from fans and critics was loud and clear. Luckily, there was a series remade for Netflix called Avatar: The Last Airbender. And this time around, the casting was far more appropriate
24. Doctor Strange (2016)
-In this 2016 film, white actress Tilda Swinton was cast as a magic expert named The Ancient One. In the comics, the character was shown as a Tibetan man. In the film, the character was revamped as Celtic and androgynous. Swinton stated the character in the film was not meant to be of Asian descent while co-screenwriter C. Robert Cargill stated he was unwilling to alienate Chinese markets. In the end, serious regret over the casting decision won out
25. Pan (2015)
-Because the original story was written in the early 20th century, not much was known about indigenous people. In 1953, when Disney released Peter Pan, it featured Native Americans in an offensive manner. In this new remake, the character Tiger Lily was given to white actress Rooney Mara. Later on, she expressed regret over taking the role
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