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From: racebending
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  • M Night is the racist.

  • Avatar-TLAB is my shit! So needless to say this movie sucked! I was extremely disappointed w/this movie, Paramount totally screwed things up. I'm a TwiHard so of course I like Jackson Rathbone but the casting is absolute bullshit. Oh & mispronouncing the names drove me crazy! The fight scenes & CGI were good but that was about it. Oh & gawd was the acting terrible. People who didn't watch the series thought the movie was great...Ha! Poor misguided souls. Sorry but us enlightened ones knw better.

  • ok guys if anyone didnt notice they had specific races play specific nations...

    whites as the water tribes, blacks and asians as earth kingdom, and idians as the fire nation

  • good point this show is based off of asian culture but i guess caucasians are still better than asians

  • I don't think it was the races that pissed off fans, so much as that they were all god-awful actors.

  • Personaly I would have casted two native american kids as Sokka and Katara, that would have been far more believeable

  • due to this the movie is ruin bad acting too

  • Comment removed

  • Real talk dude... real talk;]

  • why are they saying that the kid that played aang looks like him he doesnt even lok close to him

  • Yeah, Hollywood is racist. Fucking surprise. Now bitch about how M Night Shalamalaman is an Indian. Hee haw.

  • Mae, is also an Asian girl, as well as Toph's earthbendings trainer. Another fact about why you can say Toph is Asian is because you can look at her size. She is 12 years old but she was drawn just a little bit taller than a 10 or 11 year old. Far east Asians are very short people.

  • Aang is white! No Asian has brown hair! Toph is an Asian girl. You can look at her parents, esp. her mother's eyelashes. All the water tribe people has blue eyes and dark brown hair. No skin colour human other than white can have blue eyes and brown hair. King Boomie has green eyes and when he was drawn as a young boy he had red hair which also only exists among the white skin human spesies. Although most characters eyes are brown, they still have dark brown hair, not black like Asians.

  • @Pantbera No offense, but Aang is asian (inspired by Tibetan Buddhists). Look at the old monks, Gyatso, etc. They are clearly asian. I'm asian and I have naturally brown hair. BTW, the eye colors of the people correspond to their nation element. No person has golden/bright yellow eyes. Zuko + the fire nation does. Also, asians have been discovered to have red hair/blue eyes so your statement is false in that regard as well.

  • @myroutine What ever. It still looks weird. Toph is Asian. Then explain the movie cast. They cast the movie as I exlained the characters. For a (planned/considered) sequel they want to use an Asian girl. Why was Aang not Asian in the movie? I am white with blonde hair and blue eyes. Never before have I seen, of all the millions to billions of Far Eastern natives as well as those in US and my country or any other country, reel, movies and cartoon with brown hair and blue eyes or just brown hair.

  • @Pantbera Well then you obviously haven't seen very many. there is an entire area of japan, for example, where people have lighter hair as well as freckles. As for the characters, all of the characters' cultures are based on actual asian cultures. why is not appropriate to assume the ethnicities would match their surroundings? The movie cast itself is racist-- they specifically prioritized caucasians for the roles most likely because of the misguided idea that white actors sell better.

  • @myroutine I can see you're a very wise know-it-all. You were not part of the US crew or the South Korean crew who created the show were you? You did not help Mike & Bryan with the story and the creation of the characters did you? You're a complete idiot!

    You don't know me anymore than I know you so you don't know my life's experiences.

    Monks and priests don't exist just in Japanese and Chinese lands and cultures. Monks and nuns are the same thing. 1 is male and the the other female.

  • @Pantbera Several of the people who DID help with the making of the show (if I recall, the sifu for choreography and the artists) opposed this movie and lamented the lack of ethnic accuracy in the cast. I don't think I'm an idiot for agreeing with what they said. Second of all, I never claimed that monks and priests exist in just East Asian cultures. I am just reiterating what the creators said.

  • @Pantbera Aang is VERY clearly based off of Tibetan monks in PARTICULAR. Bryan and Mike hired an expert so that all the fighting accurately reflected ASIAN fighting styles. Same for the writing in Avatar world-- they worked very hard to ensure it was 100% authentic CHINESE. the architecture, clothes, culture- when all of it has been based off of PURELY asian fusion, and painstakingly so, would it be so radical to deduce that the characters themselves are also asian? its common sense.

  • @myroutine I know they worked very hard. Then all I can say is they should have drawn the cartoon characters with a lot more detail and drew their faces according to EA'n profiles and not whites' profiles because they're a different human species, just like blacks are another human species.

  • @Pantbera wow just wow

  • @myroutine I know all those things you just said! I have the whole Avatar series and I've watched the specials several times and I've known the architectures, fasions and cultures aswell as their traditions of many countries in Europe and Asia including China for many years before I was a teen. Did you know the name "Europe" is actually "Europa" and that at first it was a woman's name? Just like for ex. Mercedes Benz was a German girl's 1st and last name.

  • @Pantbera then explain how I am asian and I have dark brown hair. You are an example of racism! I have brown hair therefore I am white, oh wait I am from Asian decent! If you didn't know their eye colour is based on they're tribe. Have you ever looked at an Asian, because I know tons of Asian's with brown hair. You are just plain stupid thinking Asian's can't have brown hair! BTW Aang is based on Tibet monks

  • @darkshadowlynn Oh, drop the subject. For all I care they can be all black albino's with screwed hair and wearing wigs for long straight hair. Who cares what they are. They could have made the characters ninja turtles for that matter!

  • @Pantbera you know i always knew that Hitler was reincarnated

  • @o0Rice0o How so? Do you believe in resurrections of people in THIS world?

  • @Pantbera um yes i believe in reincarnation not in resurrection like jesus. btw which race is superior?

  • @o0Rice0o Don't know and don't care.

  • Oh man I agree!!!!

  • THE LAST AIRBENDER MOVIE SUCKED! absolutely nothing like the series (which was AWESOME!!!!) like seriously called sokka, sooka, is stupid. and Earoh instead of iroh. u gotta be kidding me. and Ong not aang... did the director even watch the series before writting the script. i could write a waaaaaay better one

  • I want that shirt.

  • I was annoyed by that to but just for the heck of it: Zuko is not that evil XD

  • The movie was awesome! How dare chu! Well anyways.. Im pretty sure theyll make another moive cuz it kinda ended in a cliffhanger. Plus, he needs to learn the other elements, so they MIGHT make 2 more movies.. Maybe 3.. IDK.. Thats my opinion, anyways..

  • OMG I HATED the airbender movie! The storyline sucked shit and the casts were laughable! I mean what the hell were they thinking?! I love the animated show and the movie almost made me turn off it... almost.

  • My friend watched this movie and loved it. I told her it didn't match the actual series. Then she got Netflix and started watching the series, since it was on there, and then told me she hated the movie. :P

  • i have watched this movie only one time then i htink why did i watched this realy stupid movie -.-

  • basically the movie was shit

  • Asians were not Asian enough to play Asians in this movie, so we had to go with the Caucasian.... except the casting of white people for the Eskimo tribe made more sense then the cartoon. I don't know many colored Eskimos. hell i don't know any Eskimos that don't fry when the sun touches them and that don't drink blood. Or maybe i just don't know any Eskimos?

  • @lyulf0

    they didnt have to use caucasians, just use people with semi dark skin:latinos, black people etc.

    besides i saw the movie, it was so stupid, they pronounced half of the names wrong: they said ahng instead of aang and their acting really sucked. Example:aang's suppoessed to be happy, easygoing, fun to be around, in the movie, he looked like a zombie and never showed any expression what-so-ever and soka's shuld be funny and silly, but instead he was serious, oh and the movie made no sense

  • @Nonizsportz12 No emotion? Maybe they should have had Kristen Stewart play him.

  • i totally agree i went to see the movie and was mad because i expected the character to be like in the show! they pick the whitest kids in the block to be the heroes

  • What made me mad was when people on youtube started saying the characters of Avatar the last air bender couldn;t be asian because they had big eyes and shit like that a lot of us don;t have small eyes its a exaggeration that people keep promoting.

  • WTF??

    

  • @heyshaybee well there were asians but they were indian. Not to be racist and all. ._. But all the actors and actresses should've been all JAPANESE you meant. XD

  • you know that this movie was like THE WORST MOVIE EVER. PERIOD.

  • @leaamarieex3 i seriously agree, (: , should of casted asians,

  • maybe the majority of the actors were white because the majority of Americans are white.

  • @crewmannumber7 One; untrue. Half of all Americans are people of color.

    Two; even if that were the case, it's a weak excuse. This takes place in an Asian fantasy world. Therefore, one should fully expect Asian actors to fill the roles. It's like saying White people are unable to 'relate' to an Asian character. Yet people of color are constantly expected to relate to a Caucasian actor, because the majority of films star them.

  • @SunnasChariot No, he's correct. One of the reasons they cast white people as the main in stories is because it is all throughout american history. More people are used to seeing many white people on the movie screen period. They try to match their demographic. Yes, most americans are half of color but that still has nothing to do with it.

  • @teed0m Maybe, but this just shows how stuck Hollywood is on past prejudices. The story doesn't even take place in the U.S.

  • @SunnasChariot Yes, I agree. That's why so many organizations, like racebending, have come to stand against. Although, I wouldn't say Hollywood is completely stuck in the past, we have made some accomplishments, race-wise. Hollywood is way more open than it used to be but of course it could still use A LOT of improving. Only time will tell.

  • @crewmannumber7 by that reasoning, the actors of tyler perry movies are the wrong color

  • first of all the movie sucked compaed to the show, it sucked so bad it was voted the first movie of 2010. second of all avatar the last airbender isnt american its japanese. thirdly why would you use white people to play asian people.

  • @theCJ0N

    wat?

    lrn2reseach plox...japanese...really?

  • what the movie and watch the anime series ...WTF it sucks (the movie) c'mon the put 20 hours in 1 and a half hours thats bullcrap

  • @boondocks43 All I'm saying is that its absurd to believe that those who cast this movie had the intentions of creating a white vs all world. I am Indian myself and I think that there are people out there looking for stuff like this to cry out about. Not everybody in this world is as evil as you would like to believe. Shyamalan wanted to create a world where each nation had a distinct race and ethnicity. The water tribe were Inuits, and last I checked they weren't into making movies

  • @MacEpic Frankly my friend, this movie had more problems to deal with besides the casting. Thank goodness for The Legend of Korra.

  • @boondocks43 I can second that Boondocks, I can second that

  • @MacEpic You claim people are 'looking for stuff like this to cry about'. but it's not hard to find at all. The 'Street Fighter' film cast Sean Ferris as Kyo Kusanagi, a Japanese character. And WHY are they looking at Caucasian actors to fill the roles of Japanese characters for the 'Akira' film? M. Night was looking to save his career. Why change what WORKED?

    Google the Igloolik Isuma Productions, a movie production studio that features films starring mostly Inuit actors and actresses.

  • they mixed up the races completly...Indians as firebenders= NO...as airbenders sure. Aang could have been asian i wouldnt have mind...sokka and katara can stay caucian...they just need a tan...AND SOKKA SHOULD HAVE BEEN FUNNY

  • I personally feel that they got the ethnicities mixed up. Zuko should have been played by someone of an Chinese/Japanese decent and Katara and Sokka should have been played by people with Indian decent. Dev Patel would probably have made a better Sokka than Zuko. And thanks to the crappy casting and lack of ATLAB comedy the movie bombed....

  • Loved the Anime Hated the movie , i mean sins when Aang and the Others are British and i'll hate the new movie if they make Toph a boy -_-"

  • why were heroes white and enemies colred?

    thats racist!

  • okay thank GOD u ppl should now realize that the NICKALODEAN show Avatar the Last Air Bender is NOT an anime or whatever...nothing to do with japan...CHINA yes, BUT it was created by two AMERICANS based on chinese culture/legends/myths/etc...om­g...that is all...

  • @Cheerzable it doesn't matter really -_-

  • @mightymoe555 yes it does. come on how would u feel if ppl were misrepresenting ur work!?!?

  • Shit i rather pay fucken 11 dollars to see the nickeloden series then the movie at the theaters!!!

  • At the San Diego Comic Con, Nick Studio's had an OFFICIAL Korra model present.

    She was a woman of color. Hardly 'ambiguous' as many have claimed Sokka and Katara to be.

    You can view the Korra panel here on the site to see for yourself.

  • isn't Paramount like 99% Jewish?

  • i hated this movie theyre werent ANY! asians I MEAN SERIOUSLY I LOVED THE CARTOON AND THESE PPL RUINED IT!!!!!!!!! EVEN FIRE NATION WASNT ASIAN AND LOOK AT THE BUILDINGS AND CLOTHES THEY WEAR ITS ASIAN DUH i havent seen the film since it came out only saw it once it was HORRIBLE

  • It's like with all of the main characters there can't be a different race other than white. And when there is, it has to be a comedy, other than The Book of Eli of course.

  • At 0:36 Soka's eyebrow is at his fourhead

  • i want that shirt at the end :)

  • I WAS SO MAD WHEN THE MOVIE CAME OUT. it freaking sucked. and i was so mad about casting. this is a good explanation. thank you.

  • ok jus wondering but i thought most asians didnt have blue eyes?

  • @TheFighteh Some do, but in the case of the show, eye color is used as a means of differentiating between the four nations.

    Blue- Water Tribe.

    Amber or Gold- Fire Nation

    Grey- Air Nomads

    Brown or green- Earth Kingdom

    Of course, this doesn't seem to be a hard and fast rule. When they were in the Fire Nation, they walked around without people stopping and looking twice at them.

  • i fuckin hate how they screwed the filmed katara is obviously not white!!!

  • the actors were fine, their colouring was fine. just because it was created with a asian feel in the world but not everything in the world was asian. and what's wrong with having multiple races in the world of Avatar? in the Earth kingdom village there were asians.. and it's only the first movie. no one starts a protest when you're watching a time period film set in medieval europe and a random black person pops up as a knight or something......

  • @Fredrick130 If everything was as fine as you claim, the film, actors etc. would NOT have been reamed like it was.

    It was NOT simply an 'Asian feel'. It was stated clearly by both the creators AND Nick Studios that it was an Asian fantasy world, just as Middle Earth is European fantasy world. Did you see any Black or Asian people thrown in? No. So why shouldn't Asians star in it? When all the heroes were White and all the background, side and villains were not, n that's NOT 'diversity'.

  • @Fredrick130 (conti.)And PLEASE. How many of the actors actually LOOKED LIKE the character they were supposed to be portraying? The very least they could have done was found actors who looked like the characters.

    Wow, ONE village where they had to be rescued by the White heroes. That changes EVERYTHING.

    And judging by the virtual silence from Paramount, I doubt the series will continue. They were supposed to make an announcement months ago, but so far nothing. That does NOT bode well for this.

  • EPIC...nailed it perfectly

  • Space Battleship Yamato, must being a great kick ass to Hollywood...

    It need to be big kick to hollywood....

  • its a fantasy film its not real, get over it

  • not to mention they pronouced sokka wrong sookah i mean really!

  • Non-whites Americans should make a film about George Washington and the founding fathers (or whatever you guys call them) and cast no white actors in leading roles. I'd recommend Morgan Freeman as George Washington and give Ben Stiller a cameo as one of Washington's slaves.

  • @shouryuuken100

    best.....comment....ever...

    rotfl (but actually)

  • @shouryuuken100 avatar is fiction

  • It was a stupid movie from the studio, but frankly, having an all-Asian cast in a movie this bad would have been worse.

  • That movie sucked ass and thats all I have to say...

  • this is all true but then still you know.... you can use different races its fine... but if the characters and the story makes no fucken sense then you got yourself a fucked up movie

    Examples: Zuko-burn mark and burned eye (burn mark is too small in the movie)(burned eye is always closed) thats all i got

  • I was ok w/ whoever was cast as Aang and the Chief guy but the other ppl are just silly xD

    Especially Soka and Zuko ..

  • Who the hell cares?

  • they dont care about what you care they only want money fame and awards for being illumanti puppets

  • Y the heck is Zuko played by Dev Patel? ZUko's supposed to be played by a HOT ASIAN! I'm not saying Dev Patel's acting bad, I mean he's great and all but for me, I guess he's not just that suitable to play the character. I mean honestly, everytime I saw him in the movie, I have to ask myself about "who is this guy again? Oh yah right, he's zuko...." OH men, at least cast some Asian (chinese or japanese that can speak english) in it.....

    Just my opinion... :)))

  • the film did the series little justice, it was just awful!

  • Its funny how ppl cant see the races in the show. Come one guys. The Air Nomads are Tibetans thats the first thing that came to my mind the first time i saw the Air Nomads on the show. Look at the robe the Dalai Lama wears, not exactly the same but similar colors. The Earth Nation is Chinese just look at the clothes they wear. Look at the names of the places in the Earth Kingdom they are very similar to the Chinese. Also the Earth Kindgom is HUGE just like China is in the real world.

  • The city of Ba Sing Se is even walled off. Its surrounded by a giant wall it doesn't take a genius to figure it out, its suppose to resemble the Great Wall of China in the real world. The Fire Nation is Japanese. You can tell the way they behave. The way the females of the fire nation paint their face with white paint just like the Geisha's of Japan. If you look at the world map in Avatar you also see the Fire Nation kinda resembles Japan. A small area next to a massive continent.

  • Japan next to China in the real world. The Water Tribe is Inuit. For this one, go to google images and type in Inuit. Exactly the same! If any of the avatar races resemble real ones at 100% resemblance its the Water Tribe. You cant tell me that the pictures of Inuit tribes dont look like the Water Tribe. Seeing all this, when a movie with real people is made the audience expects to see the races on the cartoon because those are the races depicted on it.

  • What if after you read the book To Kill a Mockingbird you saw the movie and it had a Mexican guy as the main actor? Reading the book you KNOW the main character was white and that is what you were expecting when you thought of the movie. So when the Last Airbender movie was announced the audience quickly started expecting the Asian culture on the movie. When you are given a bunch of white people it ruins the whole thing. Its not takin the race thing to far. Its just we want what we were expectin

  • @Uitsdo your right and, espicially the whole fire nation being full of brown people who does shamylan think he is changing shit as he pleases. This aint no bollywood film

  • If you cannot depict the show for what it is why make a movie at all? On top of it the actors werent really good at all. The movie was rushed, i didnt feel attached to Aang like i did in the show and i didnt feel the Katara character at all. Zoka wasent funny and Zuko didnt look as 'evil' as he really was in the beginning. The movie sucked just like the Dragonball one! They need to fix the whole white washing everything. It'll change Hollywood for the better.

  • god the fact that we draw attention to this shit is so fucking stupid

  • and toph wasnt even there so it became more boring

  • So what?

  • zuko wasnt hot at all in the movie like he is in the show. u ppl failed me, turning all my favorite shows growing up, and making them like this...

  • 1. caucasian actors/actresses for the protagonists, 2. even though they're Asian, why did they pick Indians, clearly they're Chinese or Japanese.

  • interesting how the whites were cast as heroes and the asian cast are the villains

  • @ScarletWinters Wow, we get it. EVERYONE keeps posting that same thing. We all know. Who fucking cares?! Even if the actors were asian, the movie would have still sucked. They needed good actors period. You guys can keep bitching about race but that's not even the issue. Actors.

  • WHY cant they pick azns like the fuck

  • i want that guys shirt

  • It makes me sad, because people who never watched the show only have the movie to judge it. The show was really great: great balance between humor, adventure, action, character's back stories and hints at love.

    And if they follow the seasons, they'll make 2 more movies... I hope all the bad reviews restrain them for doing so.

  • The casting sucked (Couldn't seen them as their character, didn't respect the show)

    The acting sucked (Even if some of the cast are good actors normally)

    The 3D animation sucked (The big ugly ball of water at the beginning was really the only thing that looked 3D)

    The way they put the story together sucked (One of my friends with whom I watched it never saw the show and didn't understood a single thing)

    I totally loved the show, but I laughed through the whole movie because it was so bad...

  • Who cares... You're making a bigger issue out of it than it really is.

  • @GamePreorders Quite a few people cared, actually. Otherwise this movement wouldn't exist.

    How often do you think a chance comes along in Hollywood where there's a script written for an Asian lead? Not often, I can tell you that much. And those that do often face the kind of whitewashing we saw with this film. Why do you think they cast Sean Ferris as Kyo Kusanagi for the live-action 'King of Fighters' film, even though Kyo is clearly defined as Japanese? Why make such fundamental changes?

  • why in a asian movie were most the people white soon as i saw actors i got mad me and my sister wondered

  • They didnt really bothered about the looks they tried to look for the same voices as the cartoon

  • I'm white and I think there should have been little to no white actors they should have Been Asian or inuit

  • I just have to say but none of the races in the cartoon were white they were all Asian or Inuit that's how it should have been ad when I say Asian I don't mean Indian I mean china or japan

  • i find that now a days the races that play a majority of main characters are white or pale skinned. the ratio of white actors to actors of other races is many to few. and if there are different kinds of races they play enemies or villains. or characters of lower importance compared to the white characters(green hornet). its not because other races have no talent becuse there are foreign actors with more talent than come american actors

    maybe the start of racial dicrimination started in shows

  • i love this anime...and i was completely disillusioned by the movie...i'd like to think it was just a nightmare....how i wish they just didn't do this...but they did..and it sucks!

    don't do stupid hollywood remakes!!!! and if you can't even do it right...just leave my fucking anime aloooonnnnee....!!!!!

  • i dont care is in this movie acting white,black,yellow,... or even green people(sarcazam). this movie make my eyes rape, because it's made like the worst lowbuget movie. it's just notwachible .

    and yes my english sucks

  • sry but i have to say this......SOKKA AIN'T WHITE D:<

    k anger's out :3

  • why aren't they asain

  • they shouuld remake the movie completely with different cast and director, and writers. the movie doesn't do the show justice. this was almost as bad, if not worse, than the dragon ball movie.

  • Shama-whatever the hell his name is and Alfred Khan the creator of 4kids could be best buddies. (Asian haters!!! >.<)

  • It was a bad choice to make this movie in the way they did (it was all crap, not just the casting!). But may I say that the evil guys are always cooler and better characters, anyway.

  • lol i hate to do this but for God's sake thumbs up if you're not wasting another cent going to see a Shyamalan movie

  • Sigh, loved the show, and then the M. Shamashit ruined it! The movie was rushed and the casting could've been better. Not to mention they changed the way firebenders bend and the pronunciation of names. I was aggravated from beginning to end. I hope someone remakes it.

  • ZUKO IS LIKE, COOL!! AND HE BECOMES A GOOD GUY LATER ON, THEY SHOULD HAVE ZUKO'S SISTER(forgot her name) TO BE THE EVIL PERSON. GRRR. I WAS SOOOOOOO DAM MAD SEEING THAT THEY MADE THIS STUPID THING WITH, WITH, WITHOUT CHINESE PEOPLE IN IT, LIKE, WE CHINESE WILL LOOK SOOO MUCH LIKE THEM THAN THOSE PEOPLE. >=(

  • another animated show ruined by being turned into a movie... thanks hollywood ^ ^

  • Not only are East Asians sidelined, Southwest Asians (Indians & Middle Easterners) are actively being demonized. Is Hollywood trying to start WWIII or what?

  • Asians can`t save the world... 

  • @TrunkMonkey3000 i know most of us start wars but give us a chance T.T we rule

  • @TrunkMonkey3000 I sure hope you're joking or else you're gonna have a lot of enemies with lines like that

  • @smileymsandi15 Sorry about that, as a matter of factI am joking about that. Please don`t be offended. I really detest racists. I just think that the Master Race is better suited to play Ang and the proverbial "good guys"

  • @Asperuaca Theres a word for that.."sellout".

  • @ericd727 thats stupid..you dont think kids of other races watch this show? The fact the cast was damn near all white doesn't urk me as much as the actors/actresses SUCKING so much.

  • I thought I was the only one who felt this way when I seen this damn film last week...it was just twisted....typical Hollywood..smh..the movie was a total fail..fan of the cartoon...but the movie is another story...they ruined everything..completely..I hope they don't make anymore

  • for something like this, it's important to know exactly where the discrimination is, and what exactly we're protesting, otherwise the argument may not hold.

  • It's kinda funny how now that the movie sucked, these guys shut up about it. I bet if it was successful they'd still be complaining.

  • @DamorahTalset that's pretty obvious, if it sucked that means less people are going to be exposed to it so there's less of a need to react. either way, protesting against the actions of the casting crew should not change.

  • @URbigdouche Bahahaha! All those movies sucked ass!

  • And as far as "racebending" goes, I agree that anyone should have an equal opportunity to play a role, but at the same time, if you say that a role CAN'T be played by Caucasians, you're equally guilty.

  • @Shikamaru1248 Caucasian actors have many more chances to land roles in film than any Asian, Hispanic or Black actor can even hope for. It is very rare a script comes along written specifically with an Asian actor lead and very often those actors are passed over for a White actor because Hollywood just does not see them as 'mainstream' or 'marketable'. Unless they are put in an otherwise stereotyped role, you won't see many Asian actors in Hollywood taking a lead role.

  • @Shikamaru1248 As an addition; no one's saying that Caucaisan actors CAN'T try out for the roles. But you have to take consistency into account. I would never once expect them to cast an Asian actor for Frodo in a 'Lord of the Rings' film because it's set against a European backdrop. Everything and everyone needs to flow and look as natural and 'real' as possible. You need to suspend disbelief. That's taken away when you put a Caucasian actor in an Inuit tribe without explanation.

  • Their nationalities in the show are fictitious. Air Nomads, Fire Nation, Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom, they are all made up. Elements of their culture are definitely taken from cultures in real life, but I don't see how that matters. Any race, any nationality is fine for playing a role in a live action movie, as long as they can portray the character accurately. Which sadly, nobody in this movie did.

  • @Shikamaru1248 it matters when you take into account the overall attention to detail; when you look at the clothes, architecture, food, written language and everything else and think 'Asian', it would stand to reason that, despite the fictitious label, all characteristics point that the characters be Asian, too.

    Try telling 'Lord of the Rings' fans that if a Black actor was cast as Gandalf or an Asian as Frodo. The setting was clearly European, so why should we expect non-European ethnicities?

  • i think this is a waste of time... i am asian, and i can care less about these stuff, look, as long as the INDIVIDUAL actor is good, whats the deal? people are taking the RACE issue way to seriously, i think in turn this will do more harm than good.

  • @sam199166 When you consider the total lack of opportunities open to Asian actors, the few scripts written for Asian leads and how often they are passed over for White actors, even when it makes no sense to cat them (as in this case and others), then no, it's NOT a waste of time. The actors performances for this film have been panned by nearly everyone who's seen it. What goo was ever gained by being silent about racial discrimination? In this case, it's systematic and habitual and it must stop.

  • @sam199166 the fact is that the leads weren't good actors. asians in hollywood have a hard time finding roles and the fact that they could have cast equally if not better asian actors/actresses is shit. i use to work in the same office of a new york casting agency and i can tell you that this practice is alive and well throughout the industry. there was a huge outrage when people thought will smith was gonna get cast as captain america. he's a good actor. why the outrage there?

  • @ericd727 Another thing: given the overall 'adult' feel of the film, with M. Night wanting to make it 'darker to appeal to a wider crowd' (which again, failed), it completely lacked that 'kid-friendly' feel.

  • @ericd727 Who SAYS kids 'identify with their own race'? They had NO TROUBLE identifying with Katara and Sokka, who were clearly NOT WHITE. Or Jaden Smith, who starred in 'The Karate Kid' remake.

    They hired these actors for two reasons; they ASSUMED that having Jackson Rathbone in would be a draw for Twilight and Rathbone fans (which was proven WRONG, given how badly the film's been received) and because M. Night specifically requested Peltz because he knew her form another film.

  • White faces sell. Get used to it, its just how the market works. Its not personal, its just business. ;)

  • @HamsterFueledRocket No they don't. That is an excuse that whites use to dominate the industry. America is browning, and I'm sure they are sick of seeing your face.

  • @maipai101 LOL

  • @HamsterFueledRocket Actually, it IS personal, especially when you make such an unsubstantiated claim. It's saying that non-White actors aren't worth as much which is TOTALLY FALSE. People lined up to see 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'. Memoirs of a Geisha' and 'Slumdog Millionaire'. ALL of these films starred non-White actors and ALL won numerous Oscars.

    It's like you're saying White people can't relate to an non-White character, but POC are expected to relate to a White male lead.

  • @SunnasChariot Calm down people, I didn't mean to offend you. Like I said its just business. All of those films you named would make no sense with white actors. Seiing as they are about people from specific countries. My point was that in general white faces sell better. Its not a coincidence that in other countries, like Japan, you still see white people on advertisements everywhere . Unless the film is specifically about another culture, you will usually see whites in the main roles.

  • @HamsterFueledRocket But is it actually TRUE that White equals more sales? Can you support this with data? Otherwise, why would 'Slumdog Millionaire' have done so well? How does 'The Last Airbender' make sense with White actors, given the clearly Asian background and culture? Also you need to be aware of; in Asian culture, pale/White skin is considered 'ideally beautiful'. much in the same way blond hair is in the West. But being widely distributed doesn't make it more profitable.

  • @HamsterFueledRocket Get used to it? people should be use to it, its been like that since movies have been coming out..Now the sad part is..people SHOULD NOT...have to be, or get used to it...smh..but it is what it is..

  • Fuck you race bending. Half the movie was asian. IF they cast it as all asians, i'll bet you would'nt care in the least that there would'nt be any caucasians in the movie.

    This is reverse racism my friend.

  • @masterofthecontinuum Why would it be reverse racism just because there wouldn't be a white person in it? There weren't any white people in the cartoon, why should there be in the movie? I'm white but the fact that not a single Asian was cast as a main character was deeply distressing. As a lover of the Avatar world I feel nothing but disappointment and disgust with this film.