# Multicultural Justice League?



## Mindfire (Dec 6, 2013)

We've had a lot of threads dealing with diversity lately, so I'm curious to see how some of our members will react to this: New JUSTICE LEAGUE Plot Details; WB Looking At African American Actors For Lex Luthor?

Rumors are surfacing that DC/WB is looking for a Black actor to play Lex Luthor, with names like Denzel Washington and Idris Elba being thrown around. It's also being rumored that future plans for the Justice League may include a "United Nations of Superheroes" approach, with members of the league coming from a variety of ethnicities and backgrounds, with the Flash possibly being Hispanic. The fact that an Israeli actress, Gal Gadot, has been cast as Wonder Woman would seem to bolster this idea.

What do you guys think? Personally, if this is the direction they're considering, I'm all for it. But they MUST make Aquaman Australian.


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## Steerpike (Dec 6, 2013)

Weak writing


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## Mindfire (Dec 6, 2013)

Steerpike said:


> Weak writing



You're so right, Steerpike. What was I thinking. They need to keep the story tight and focused, which of course logically means they can only have white actors.


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## buyjupiter (Dec 6, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> Rumors are surfacing that DC/WB is looking for a Black actor to play Lex Luthor, with names like Denzel Washington and Idris Elba being thrown around. It's also being rumored that future plans for the Justice League may include a "United Nations of Superheroes" approach, with members of the league coming from a variety of ethnicities and backgrounds, with the Flash possibly being Hispanic. The fact that an Israeli actress, Gal Gadot, has been cast as Wonder Woman would seem to bolster this idea.
> 
> What do you guys think? Personally, if this is the direction they're considering, I'm all for it. But they MUST make Aquaman Australian.



If they cast Idris Elba, I'll watch. *swoon* Do they have to include Aquaman?

*mumbles about how Marvel is better, waiting for the argument to explode*


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## Devor (Dec 6, 2013)

I don't know if I mentioned this before, but a friend of mine killed Spider Man.  He started on twitter the call to draft Donald Glover for Peter Parker in the movie (I've seen news pieces crediting his twitter handle), and when the dust settled, they instead decided to kill Peter Parker in the ultimate comic line and pass the mantle of Spider Man to a new character that looks a lot like Donald Glover.

In my opinion new characters are the better way to go.  I think hijacking established characters can create problems, and in some ways undermines the whole point.

Of course it worked with Samuel L, and they followed that change across their comics.  But Nick Fury was a weak character before he took the role.  So there's that.


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## Penpilot (Dec 6, 2013)

This doesn't bother me in the least. An international Justice League has been done before with the obvious name Justice League International. They had characters from Brazil and Russia, but nobody that I can recall with obvious color... unless you count green for Martian Manhunter.  

But, I think they could down grade the fanboy rage by just using some of the newer incarnations of certain characters: The Atom, Ryan Choi, Chinese; Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes, Mexican; Green Lantern, John Stewart, Black.... etc. 

As for casting Denzel Washintion, et al. As long as they do a good job I don't care. For example Michael Clarke Duncan IMHO did a great job as the Kingpin in Daredevil. It's too bad the movie was just average.


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## Ophiucha (Dec 7, 2013)

I generally don't mind them switching the races of major characters, and I love Lex Luthor so seeing someone like Idris Elba play him would be... mmm, words couldn't describe my euphoria. I always thought he didn't look white in the Justice League animated series, too, and I saw that before I saw any of the films or comics. For the heroes, it'd probably be easier to just create/pick one that is already of whichever race they desire; I always thought John Stewart was a better Green Lantern than Hal Jordan, particularly after that dreadful movie from a couple years back. Wonder Woman being Israeli seems like a good choice, too, since I've always pictured the Amazons as a mix of races from around the Mediterranean.

The Flash, I must admit that his power lends itself to some unfortunate jokes if he were Latino, but it'd be nice to have a Latino superhero in a movie so I could get behind it. And Aquaman... I think it'd have to be something tropical. If they want him to be white, then he _totally _needs to be Australian, I agree with you on that one. Jamaican or Polynesia would be my 'racebend' choice, though.


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## Jabrosky (Dec 7, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> The fact that an Israeli actress, Gal Gadot, has been cast as Wonder Woman would seem to bolster this idea.


Gal Gadot may be Israeli by nationality and Jewish by faith, but she is still of Central European descent since that's where her ancestors immigrated from. I'd be more impressed if they cast someone of genuinely Middle Eastern or Mediterranean heritage.

Are there any other major female characters in the Justice League? I'd like to see an African female superhero in their ranks (Vixen?).


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## Mindfire (Dec 7, 2013)

Ophiucha said:


> And Aquaman... I think it'd have to be something tropical. If they want him to be white, then he _totally _needs to be Australian, I agree with you on that one. Jamaican or Polynesia would be my 'racebend' choice, though.



I was actually considering Pacific Islander. But the reason I ultimately suggested Australian is that one of Aquaman's defining features is his blonde hair. It's actually a significant part of his mythos, and Polynesians aren't known for being blonde.


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## Mindfire (Dec 7, 2013)

Jabrosky said:


> Gal Gadot may be Israeli by nationality and Jewish by faith, but she is still of Central European descent since that's where her ancestors immigrated from. I'd be more impressed if they cast someone of genuinely Middle Eastern or Mediterranean heritage.
> 
> Are there any other major female characters in the Justice League? I'd like to see an African female superhero in their ranks (Vixen?).



Vixen is typically a second-stringer. The first Justice League film will no doubt feature higher-profile heroes. Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are guaranteed obviously. The rest of the roster will probably be filled out by Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and maybe Martian Manhunter. The only other female hero with a chance of making it onto the roster early on would be Hawkgirl, due to her role in the animated series.


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## Penpilot (Dec 7, 2013)

I'd say there's at least one more, Black Canary. I'd say she's at least in the same category as Hawkgirl, maybe a bit highter. She was once the chairman of the JLA. But yeah, other than Vixen, there isn't really a female character that's black on the roster. But if you're talking black males, there are more choices, Cyborg, Black lightning... etc.


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## Mindfire (Dec 7, 2013)

Penpilot said:


> I'd say there's at least one more, Black Canary. I'd say she's at least in the same category as Hawkgirl, maybe a bit highter. She was once the chairman of the JLA. But yeah, other than Vixen, there isn't really a female character that's black on the roster. But if you're talking black males, there are more choices, Cyborg, Black lightning... etc.



I'd prefer Cyborg to be on a Teen Titans-esque team with Nightwing and others. But Black Lightning I can get behind.


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## Reaver (Dec 8, 2013)

I think that the Justice League is already pretty multicultural, but if they could expand it without getting insulting or resort to lazy writing, I'm all for for it. 

For example, in my opinion, John Stewart is a far more interesting Green Lantern than Hal Jordan and it has nothing to do with race. (He and I were both U.S. Marine snipers.) If they can change the ethnicities of key characters and keep them interesting, then that would be great.

But I must ask: does no one else see Black Lightning's name as unfortunately coincidental? Why is he called Black Lightning? Is it the costume? Does he shoot black lightning from his eyes or hands? To me, his name is as bad as Black Vulcan and Apache Chief.

I don't know... Maybe it has something to do with the decade in which Black Lightning was created, but then again, according to the DC wiki, John Stewart made his first appearance 5 years prior.  

I guess I'll chalk it up to lack of creativity.


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## Mindfire (Dec 8, 2013)

Reaver said:


> So no one sees Black Lightning's name as unfortunately coincidental? Why is he called Black Lightning? Is it the costume? Does he shoot black lightning from his eyes or hands? To me, his name is almost as terrible as Apache Chief.



Well, in Young Justice his lightning actually is black, which retroactively justifies the name. But as far as the original character goes, he's called Black Lightning because... idk. So many Black superheroes created back then had "black" in their name.


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## Reaver (Dec 8, 2013)

Devor said:


> In my opinion new characters are the better way to go.  I think hijacking established characters can create problems, and in some ways undermines the whole point.
> 
> Of course it worked with Samuel L, and they followed that change across their comics.  But Nick Fury was a weak character before he took the role.  So there's that.



I've always seen Nick Fury like James Bond... more of a job title than an actual person. So in my opinion, the ethnicity of whomever filled that slot wouldn't undermine the character.  I think the only way to undermine the character would be to switch gender. (Sorry ladies, just my opinion.)


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## Penpilot (Dec 8, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> Well, in Young Justice his lightning actually is black, which retroactively justifies the name. But as far as the original character goes, he's called Black Lightning because... idk. So many Black superheroes created back then had "black" in their name.



Well, to each yin there's a yang. Here's a DC villain named White lightning. White Lightning (New Earth) - DC Comics Database She's from Alabama and her ability is Driving.


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## Reaver (Dec 8, 2013)

Penpilot said:


> Well, to each yin there's a yang. Here's a DC villain named White lightning. White Lightning (New Earth) - DC Comics Database She's from Alabama and her ability is Driving.



Somewhere around The Scriptorium is a thread about superheroes with weak powers, but this is probably the weakest.


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## SeverinR (Dec 18, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> We've had a lot of threads dealing with diversity lately, so I'm curious to see how some of our members will react to this: New JUSTICE LEAGUE Plot Details; WB Looking At African American Actors For Lex Luthor?
> 
> Rumors are surfacing that DC/WB is looking for a Black actor to play Lex Luthor, with names like Denzel Washington and Idris Elba being thrown around. It's also being rumored that future plans for the Justice League may include a "United Nations of Superheroes" approach, with members of the league coming from a variety of ethnicities and backgrounds, with the Flash possibly being Hispanic. The fact that an Israeli actress, Gal Gadot, has been cast as Wonder Woman would seem to bolster this idea.
> 
> What do you guys think? Personally, if this is the direction they're considering, I'm all for it. But they MUST make Aquaman Australian.



Flash=hispanic? ONDELAY, ONDELAY, ARRIBA, ARRIBA, yeppa, yeppa. Wouldn't that be Speedy Gonzales? 
"Holy frijoles Batman, what is the Flashes secret weapon? -Gag-gag-"
"Don't pull my finger next time, Vato."

Ok, Vato means "a man that means business", not sure that fits for Robin.


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## SeverinR (Dec 18, 2013)

Reaver said:


> Somewhere around The Scriptorium is a thread about superheroes with weak powers, but this is probably the weakest.


But her juice is mighty strong!
She might not be a villain to guard your back, but she is the one to party with.


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## Hainted (Dec 28, 2013)

I still think Gina Carano should be Wonder Woman, but I would go with Common as John Stewart/Green Lantern, Noel Clarke(Mickey from Doctor Who) as Cyborg, and Bryan Cranston as Lex. Hawkwoman? I want to go with Freida Pinto and Jason Momoa as Lobo


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## Mindfire (Dec 28, 2013)

Common? The rapper? Are you serious?


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## Hainted (Dec 29, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> Common? The rapper? Are you serious?



Go watch Hell on Wheels on AMC and then tell me he couldn't be John Stewart.


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## Mindfire (Dec 29, 2013)

Hainted said:


> Go watch Hell on Wheels on AMC and then tell me he couldn't be John Stewart.



Whenever a musician or an athlete suddenly decides they want to be an actor, I tend to side-eye that _real_ hard. Doubly so if it's an athlete who's decided to become a musician _and_ an actor. Yes, I'm looking at you, Shaq. >_>


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## T.Allen.Smith (Dec 29, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> Whenever a musician or an athlete suddenly decides they want to be an actor, I tend to side-eye that real hard. Doubly so if it's an athlete who's decided to become a musician and an actor. Yes, I'm looking at you, Shaq. >_>



Yes, it worked out horribly for Will Smith....  

And Elvis, Ice Cube, Barbara Streisand, Mark Wahlberg....


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## Mindfire (Dec 29, 2013)

T.Allen.Smith said:


> Yes, it worked out horribly for Will Smith....
> 
> And Elvis, Ice Cube, Barbara Streisand, Mark Wahlberg....



And of those how many were great at both acting AND whatever they were before they became actors? Only Will Smith. But even taking all of them into consideration, they don't even come close to making up for Shaq, Michael Jordan, and all the other wannabe actors who crawled out of the woodwork in the 90s.


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## T.Allen.Smith (Dec 29, 2013)

Mindfire said:


> And of those how many were great at both acting AND whatever they were before they became actors? Only Will Smith. But even taking all of them into consideration, they don't even come close to making up for Shaq, Michael Jordan, and all the other wannabe actors who crawled out of the woodwork in the 90s.


I'll give you the athlete bit, but all of the singer/actors named above were very successful, at least in terms of being prolific. Whether or not they are good is a matter of opinion.


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## taiwwa (Feb 2, 2014)

Eh, sure.

Of course, casting the villain won't raise many hackles. Casting a major character -- god forbid, Superman, Batman even, won't be happening. 

I remember there was a fairly big backlash among...certain groups...when Idris Elba was cast as the minor Norse gatekeeper god in Thor. I thought he did a fantastic job personally, and heck, he was hidden behind the helmet the entire time anyways, but some people...

Then again, Norse legends hold special appeal among that set. Justice League probably not so much. But, as I said earlier, you will likely never see a major central heroic character change. And even then the overall structure will actually not be multicultural, just the appearances of the characters.


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## Ophiucha (Feb 2, 2014)

Well, now that we know some of the casting choices for the Superman/Batman film, I must say that no amount of backlash for casting a black Batman or whatever could match the amount of backlash they are getting for casting Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor.


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