The coming block buster, “The Prince of Persia,” opening shortly, is garnering much publicity, but not all of it for its spectacular special effects and action sequences. There is growing criticism over the use of Jake Gyllenhaal, a white actor, as the lead in “The Prince of Persia” because, apparently, the role was written for a minority, as it is in the video game version. Those criticizing the studio for using Gyllenhaal are right when they say that the game sold well with the minority lead – so why not for the silver screen?
Muslims in particular are upset because they say it seems ok to portray them as terrorists and religious zealots, but not as being heroic. It is true that the studio owns the right to the potential blockbuster and can cast whom they want – but there are excellent Middle Eastern looking actors who could have played the hero in The Prince of Persia too. The choice of casting Gyllenhaal is curious; no doubt he has the acting chops, but to me he doesn’t seems to have the hue or the natural built for the role, not-with-standing the advent of “blue screen.”
Let me be the devil’s advocate and argue the studio’s or the white actor’s point. The nature of being an actor is being able to morph into roles - this is why it is call acting. I once saw the comedian, Cedric The Entertainer, playing the lead in the Honeymooners. What about Robert Downey’s hilarious take as a Blackman in the movie Tropic Thunder? Another aspect we have to look at is the fact that the studio provided the millions to make The Prince of Persia… shouldn’t it choose the actor best it thinks can recoup its investment? Like everything else dealing with choice, I suppose the studio is saying that if you don’t like our choice as lead, then the fans of the video version will not support the finished product. I am certain that with the money it took to make The Prince of Persia… the studio did its marketing research and knew the criticism a white lead would engender.
The main reason why minorities are complaining about roles written for them going to white actors is due to the fact that their white counterparts already get all the choice roles - so when Hollywood gives the few heroic roles that were written for minorities to whites, it is like pouring salt in a festering wound. The Prince of Persia is not the only movie facing some minorities ire – so too is M Night Shyamalan’s - ironically a minority himself - casting of a white actor as the lead in “The Last Airbender.” This whole debate is another aspect of Political Correctness run amok; lest we forget that in the recent movie “2012,” the director depicted the destruction of every religious icons belonging to the major religions, except those of the Muslims - go figure.
The Prince of Persia - Should White Actors Portray Characters Who Are Minorities?
The problem is in the history of Hollywood and American racial segregation, Anglos prohibited non-Anglo actors from performing, especially in leading roles. When nonwhites, particularly Blacks, Native Americans and Asians, were cast, they were to play stereotypical roles. Prince of Persia and Avatar have leading actors chosen because many casting directors and film directors believe that an Anglo actor playing lead will generate more sales. In both films, there is no interest in maintaining cultural or historic authenticity. There has also been a repeated history of believing that Anglo actors can play "everyman" and represent every aspect of humanity. Tropic Thunder was poking fun at that concept, which is why Downey's character has a meltdown. Why you mention the Honeymooners, I am not sure of the relevance. It was merely a set of Black actors redoing a film. It's not as if the Honeymooners was remade and someone nonwhite played a lead role while the other characters were Anglo. I digress... Avatar is Chinese in origin and it will be someone from the Hong Kong film world to do justice by the storyline. Prince of Persia is, well, Iranian. I doubt that Hollywood and its many Jewish constituents care to do any type of collaborative work with Iran or an Iranian, especially considering the latest political developments.
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