Capslock_ATLA Pretty much crapped a brick and since that post have been making cracks and shouting "BLACKFACE" and "RACISM" on the tops of their lungs.

BNFS Rufftoon, Alterncoppa and Ali_Wildgoose have been pretty much this " >=|" they are not happy with the whitewash, and I have to agree.

Would it kill the casting director to cast dark-skinned actors/actresses for the watersibs.

Wow, just, wow. I think I've lost all faith in M. Night Shymalan (if I had any in the first place, as he's one of my least favorite directors) for casting JESSE MCCARTNEY as Zuko. Surely they could have picked someone else...

And an actor from the TWILIGHT movies? Gah. For me, nothing will ever top the cartoon.

Gah. I guess I won't be seeing this movie, then.

I doubt I'll be going, either. That is simply ridiculous. I have lost all faith in M. Night Shymalan. I usually like his movies to, but this time I'm not even sure if Kanea and I wille even bother to go. I mean, that's just... stupid beyond reason. I can't think of any other way to phrase it. I mean, seriously... Avatar is an Asian-based show, why are they picking non-asians? And Jesse McCartney for Zuko?! He's not even that good of an actor. Zuko's my favorite character, and... *shudders* I think I'll just stay out for this one. BOYCOTT I SAY!!!!

So, yeah, Shio, that's how we feel, I think. *nods*

My first reaction upon seeing the actors was literally WTF! I don't drop the F-bomb that often, I was far more than disappointed.

Tikaani- I believe that the majority of the Avatar fandom feels that way. We have back stabbed worse than Long Feng.

Kai- They say that the kids were chosen by acting ability. I sincerely doubt that. It looks like a good 'ol fashion Hollywood White washing.

Karena- I did not have such high hopes for the movie, and only planned on seeing it because it was Avatar. But these choices, just suck in my opinion. How could they do this to Zuko. They pick a pop star to play a moody-emo-season 1 Zuko!

This pretty much sums the reaction of the fandom satire and all

[glow=white,2,300]Shio Edit: I know you know the rules. Refrain from posting less than 300 characters. I also fixed your link.[/glow]

Alright, so this is basically the exact same reaction the fandom are having to DragonBall: The Movie. Which by the way is going to be the best movie of 2009.

But seriously, settle down. Oh no! It's the end of the world, Katara is being played by an actress her own age! It's the end of the world! Now lets face it. Avatar is a Cartoon. You can argue all you want that it's enjoyed by adults as well, or people our age. But in the end it's directed at ages 12-14. So why not Jesse McCartney. I like the idea as an unknown as Aang, especially if he already has a history in Martial Arts. Sokka could have pretty much been played by anyone. I know half of the fandom was praying for a bunch of attractive 20 somethings cranking the Angst-Meter to 11 and begging for a Zutara scene.
It'll be good, I'ttle be avatar.

Actually. They are pissed more so the fact the cast is whitewashed and there no ethnic variaty. The fact that they are picking two PASTY PALE people to play DARK SKINED characters, screams of Blackface.

[glow=3E8BFF,2,300]Kai edit: Hey Tikaani, like Shio said, remember the 300 character limit rule. This doesn't include quotes.[/glow]

I have to agree with Tikaani, it's the white washing that is bothering me. I know it's the acting that matters, but to just ignore a character's skin color like that just hurts. Yes it sounds racist, but the part of Katara that I loved was that she was confident, powerful, dark skinned girl. I really find it hard to believe that not a single dark skinned person tried out for the roles, and if that's the case all brown teenage actors with agents should fire their agents. I would really have preferred every character to be played by East Asian looking actors. Damn the Europeanization of beauty.

The saddest part is that these movies are being made by a fan of the series.

Oooh, ooh, I've got a character that doesn't need to be Asian: Suki! She's brunette with blue-gray eyes.

Now, considering their casting choices I'm thinking that she'll be played by someone with blonde hair and possibly a singer as well.

My reaction to the news was a bit of my brain imploding, repeating the names aloud to my folks who regarded me with this look, and then laughing. Really, that's all that can be done at this point. That and total riffing comic strips (believe me, I will). M. Night was a bad fit for the adaptation in the first place, who wouldn't know up tempo dialogue if it bit him in the rear end and isn't someone I'd call on for snappy action scenes. I'm not saying all his movies are bad (I have a certain fondness for Unbreakable) but even at his best he wouldn't be who I'd go to for Avatar in a million years. In fact, I think all this chatter about him being a fan is hooey. They just say that to placate people and make us think he "understands." By this casting he doesn't "understand" in the least bit.

Zuko at the very least needs to be played by someone who can perform the long metamorphosis, showing the violent anger and the traumatic pain. He has the greatest arc over the series in terms of shifting world view (no matter what the others went through they still saw the Fire Nation as a threat from the get go). That means the actor needs to have the greatest range. Despite being the voice of Roxas, I don't think Jesse McCartney has that depth.

Then again, I wasn't planning on this movie being good since it was announced so I find myself not being all that surprised or upset. Hollywood is deathly afraid of being individual and interesting (how many remakes do we need, really?). Success can be achieved by recycling the proven formulas, always containing the white white bread antagonists.

For the record, I'm as white as white can be (to the point of having the term 'vampire' thrown at me). Apparently it would have killed them to hire anyone who wasn't fish belly white.

I agree with Ai Lin and Shio in regards to Zuko. I try to be understanding when it comes to these things, but... JESSE FREAKING MCCARTNEY?!!!! Come on... Zuko is my favorite of the series, always was, and... WTH!!! Part of me is seriously hoping that this is all just one of those "too early too tell" things everyone always gets worked up about (me included), but I have a bad feeling that it's not. I just... *shakes head* I can't get it out of my head. I can picture Jesse McCartney, and never will he ever in a million years be Zuko!!!!!

I also agree that picking white people for the dark-skinned character is a mistake. I never expected to put as true to the show as we would have liked. I mean, when are they ever, honestly? But their choices are just... *shudders* It's sad. I mean, I'd have to agree with Ai Lin (again) - would it kill them to hire people who can at least pass for the part?! I mean, hiring someone's who's not white would not have harmed anything... (For the record, I am as white as white can be, too.) And... *takes deep breath* I will not mention Jesse McCartney again... *mutters*

Wtf is up with this world?! JesseMcCartney as Zuko, I hope that we are getting punked. Cause can I say Eragon, Queen of the Damned? They ruined these books when they turned them into movies. And the same can be done when you do not have the right cast, or a sucky screen writer that has no idea whqt they are doing, or enore the basis of what the movie is based on. If they want to turn Zuko into some pansy happy go lucky pretty boy, I will scream. Or the same goes for having him act like they protrayed him in the play done by the show. Looking everywhere for his honor, and making an ass of himself.

It is just wrong for them to just want to cast him for the role. Like Death Note, when they did that movie they did it right. I will be happy with an updated list of actors that will fit better into the wotld of Avatar.

Alright! That is it! You can complain all you want about Avatar, DragonballZ, or even freakin' Quantom...Quantam? Quantum of Solace! But no-one, and I mean no-one! Disses Eragon. I love that movie. End of story.

Anyways. Katara's not dark-skinned. Really ladies, I wouldn't worry about that too much. I'm sure that both Rathbone (The only actor I have a problem with since they're doing the old '15 year old boy played by a 25 year old' deal with him) and Peltz are going to undergo some heavy skin-cancer inducing tanning bed sess's. Also, you're both forgetting Make-up and CGI.
Yeah, I'm sure you can argue: "But it should be natural!"
To which I say? Where do we draw the line?

Katara and Sokka are Inuit. So should they only be played by Inuit Actors? What about Zuko? Should he be some almost-asian looking white kid? Finally, Kids Movie=Kids Casting. What did you expect.
It still would have the potential to be a great movie except

M NIGHT SHAMALAYN.
Honestly? Why is this man allowed near a movie set? "Alright, how about this. It turns out Aang's not the Avatar! He's a vampire/werewolf hybrid....from space!"

"Alright how about this...They're not in Asia...they're in Stanley Park!"

I haven't enjoyed a single movie by so-called 'acclaimed writer and directer' M. Night Shamalamalan.

They should just get the Director of Eragon to do this. End of story.
Speaking of which! When are the sequals coming out?

Okay, I was behind Kanea when she wrote that, and she was using it as an example, so I didn't say anything... I want to say for the record now, PLEASE keep things in reference to the Avatar movie, not anything else. I know it could so easily turn the other way, which is why I'm stopping this before anyone else decides to comment on Kanea's post. If you have anything non-Avatar movie related to talk about, please take it over IM or PM, please, and thank you.

@ Auka - what do you mean, Katara's not dark-skinned? The Water Tribe folks are Inuit [at least, that is their equivalent IRL]. Inuit people are dark skinned — they may not be African dark skinned, but they are darker than your average Caucasian.

My thoughts - this movie was shot to hell the moment they announced M. Night Shamalamawhatever as the director. It screamed "EPIC FAIL" the moment that was announced. Next thing you know, Aang's really dead but he doesn't know it, the trees are to blame for the Fire Nation's war on humanity, and no one can every leave their homes to explore for fear of the monsters that lurk in the woods after dark.

EDIT: As to character choices - what the hell is so hard about casting Asians to play Asian-based characters? Hmmm?

M. Night Shyamalan is directing? Should be interesting. And full of incidents in which I shall say, "WHAT A TWEEEEEEEEEST."

In any case, the casting doesn't bother me for the reasons it may bother you guys. I imagine if anyone is upset, it's probably because their appearances do not fit the bill or because nameless actors are being put into roles they're just not gonna do the justice to. (Twilight, anyone?)

The casting bothers me because they seem too old for their roles. Not that they ARE too old, they just seem to be too old. The O.C anybody? Hi, I'm 15 years old, cast with a 25 year old actor. Don't like that : |

Before the cast list came out, I viewed the movie with equal parts anticipation and trepidation. On one hand, I was proud that the powers that be wanted to put my favorite cartoon on the big screen, hopefully attract new fans and show the world how awesome the series is. On the other hand, I hadn't seen any of Shyamalan's movies and other fan comments on his directing style/ability didn't inspire much confidence. But I was still hopeful, naive optimist that I am.

It's strange how race didn't even cross my mind as an issue until my friend IMed me and asked if I'd seen the cast list. Like Ai Lin said, "brain imploding" describes my reaction pretty well. I won't lie; the main pull of Avatar for me personally is the Asian fantasy flavor smorgasbord. When I first saw the commercials for the show, I was thrilled. Non-white main characters? Asian-looking world complete with appropriate backgrounds, buildings, and landscapes? Kung fu-inspired magic as true as possible to their real-life counterparts? And it was an American production and not another anime dub? Sweet. Wait, was this really not a parody or a caricature? No? Sweet.

Now I see the main cast choices and feel like the spirit of the show is being grossly betrayed. I know it sounds dramatic, but that's honestly how I feel. It's not like I think about race issues every day, just brief moments that remind me that even though I live in the most culturally diverse state in the country and perceive myself to be just as American as the next person, there is some small undeniable part of me that mainstream society still sees as foreign, the other, a backup. It's a subtle feeling, but it's slowly getting better. There was that Home Depot commercial with an Asian American family speaking (gasp) perfect English and acting otherwise (gasp) normal. But sometimes there are steps backward, like the Six Flags commercial with the crazy Asian guy screaming in accented English. *facepalm*

The movie cast choices are a step backward, to me. As an Asian, I'm miffed. As a student of the social sciences, I have to shake my head. Oh, Hollywood. Why must you perpetuate the white privilege trends my professors, textbooks, and articles urge us to step away from?

I'm angry, yes, but I'm also disappointed. If whoever's in charge doesn't make an effort to clean up this mess quick, at this rate the film's going to be disowned by fans and the other two won't even get made (not that that would necessarily be a bad thing).

I didn't vote here, because there was no "I don't care" choice. xP
but yeah, I honestly don't really care. maybe it's just because I'm not really a big "movies" type person, but either way, if this was a "Blow to the Avatar Fandom", then it probably just made me blink a few times and say "lol wut happened?"

I've always thought that the Avatar Fandom was a bit 'extreme' in some cases, such as some reactions to the finale and such .

Naturally, I had no idea who any of those actors were [though Jesse McCartney seemed to ring a bell, but only slightly], so I didn't know they were all white 'till I read it all over the internet the next day. Even then though, it did not really faze me. There's nothing that makeup, special effects, and Hollywood can't do, so getting them to look like the characters is not the issue. Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, I'm not white either, I'm Hispanic, so my lack of concern for the [so far] all-white cast is not because of my own race.

Incidentally, Aang, Sokka, and Zuko have never really been characters I've been terribly interested in, and my liking/disliking for Katara is a very complex story that cannot be explained in a thread like this without going vastly off-topic, [like I've done about 31 times already]. The characters I want to see are Toph, Azula, and Iroh.

With all of that said and done, I'm pretty much neutral. it might also be because I've never seen any of season I of Avatar [except "The Waterbending Master"], and with the show over, the lack of Toph, and several other factors, I just can't motivate myself to waste 7 hours of my time watching it [each ep is 22-23 minutes, and there's 19 I haven't seen. comes to about 7 hours]. I guess I'm mostly looking forward to Part II in 2012 and Part III in 2014.

So yeah, I'm neutral about all this mess. I've never really been into movies and actors and all that jazz, so this doesn't really do much for me/to me. Hell, I'm surprised that I came up with all of this rant for this topic. I also find that I save time not making myself look like a whiner when people boob and complain about these sorts of things. complaining to people on "t3h int3rn3tz" will not do much. if I cared more about this I'd take it up with the cause itself.

But, since I don't, I'll just keep being your everyday Tenoko.
~Tenoko~