Some fallacies in the argument against race-bending

Since the Marvel Cinematic Universe began in 2008 with the post-credits scene in Iron Man, super-hero movies have been a nearly constant staple at the box office. With all of these new movies, more actors and actresses are required to fill these costumes. Casting these actors and actresses is one of the most talked-about and controversial topics on the internet in relation to these films. There is endless debate about how closely the movies should reflect their source material. The controversy comes when the heroes’ races are changed, inciting an entire range of emotions; empowerment, indifference, and even rage.

The people enraged with the changes are the most vocal, so they will be the ones treated in this blog. Finding issue from minor characters such as Idris Elba as Heimdall in Thor to major characters such as the speculated Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm in the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot, these arguments mostly boil down to bigoted fallacies.

The arguments of this group are recycled over and over again [perhaps to incite ad nauseum, which “uses repetition to assert the truth in the belief that if something is said enough times people will believe that it is true” (Smith 115)] in the comments on virtually any article about casting, rumour or not, and so, the following quotations are not direct quotes, but are the general consensus of these arguments:

I.                   When Idris Elba was cast as Heimdall in Thor, backlash ensued. “How can a Norse god be black? Norse people are white!”

Fallacy: The fallacy here is composition, which “assumes that the whole has the same property as its parts” (Smith 115). Just because every Norse person is white, does not necessarily mean that everyone in their mythology is. Also, key word: mythology.

II.                When Jamie Foxx, an Academy Award winning actor, was cast as a villain in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, there was significant backlash, yet again. A common argument against this sort of race-bending is “Well if Electro can be played by a black actor, then why can’t a white actor play someone like Martin Luther King, Jr?” and "Production companies are only trying to be trendy by adding diversity." This is a straw man argument, which is “a fabricated weak argument of an opponent and then declares victory without attacking stronger arguments that are on the opposing side” (Smith 115). In these cases, the arguments they are attacking, that a white person shouldn't play Martin Luther King Jr.(which is obvious and true) and that trendiness is the only reason for diversity are not even really arguments made by the opposing side. This argument is invalid because Electro is not a character whose race is important, while Martin Luther King Jr.’s is. 

Currently, the rumours circulating that Michael B. Jordan will play Johnny Storm are causing plenty of controversy and bringing back all of these arguments once again. I personally find all arguments against this irrelevant because Michael B. Jordan is an awesome actor. The end.

For more thoughts on the matter, visit: http://www.racebending.com/v4/blog/ or read Malcolm X's "Devil-in-the-Flesh"