Whitewashing in Movies

There is a huge problem in the entertainment industry called whitewashing. According to Wikipedia, whitewashing is defined as “a casting practice in the film industry of the United States in which white actors are cast in historically non-white character roles.”

The problem with this is of course the fact that the act of whitewashing a film means taking away an opportunity for a person of color and giving it to a white person. This truly just shows the discrimination present in the film industry.

The second problem that arises from whitewashing movies is the perpetuation of stereotypes. If one looks at a whitewashed movie such as the dearly beloved Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), the problem becomes clear. According to Complex, “Not only was Mickey Rooney cast to portray a Japanese man, the character itself indulges so many stereotypes about people of Asian descent, it would've still been offensive had an actual Japanese actor been cast.” It has become a common thing to use blackface and yellowface to create stereotypical and caricature-like roles that are racist.

We’re not done listing all the problems that come with whitewashing quite yet.

Thirdly, whitewashing creates a monopoly of what actors in film look like. By only casting white people, films are being dominated by light-skin and European features which, surprise, perpetuates colorism. Colorism is “Prejudice or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group,” according to the Oxford Living Dictionary. The whitewashing in the U.S. has created Western beauty standards which has affected non-white countries.

Growing up with Spanish-speaking parents, I would sit around the TV watching Mexican telenovelas. I never noticed the trend within these television shows of casting European-looking men and women. However, looking back, the pattern is obvious. Women with light skin, blue or green eyes, and not indigenous looking.

It’s important to realize all the consequences that come with whitewashing. From the lack of representation to misrepresentation of minorities to the colorism that continues to thrive in minority communities. It becomes easy to forget it when Scarlett Johansson just looks so freaking cool in the new movie coming out called “Ghost in the Shell” or because as M. Night Shyamalan said for the casting of the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender, “We didn’t take race into consideration—we just cast the best person for the role.”

First of all, okay I’ll admit it. Scarlett looks cool. She really does. However, imagine how much cooler it would be if a Japanese woman could take that role and help diversify Hollywood a little bit. Scarlett instead took away that opportunity from a whole ethnicity.

Second of all, Shyamalan saying that he casted without taking race into consideration is the same thing as someone saying they don’t “see” color. That’s called being colorblind and that erases the oppression and history of a minority group. Shyamalan saying he casted without looking at race means he denies the lack of representation of minorities.

Whitewashing has several consequences that may be hard to acknowledge because some of them are long-term rather than short-term. However, this is a fight worth fighting to help younger generations see themselves in the super-heroes and role models of television.