Black Thor Actor Talks About Racist Comic Book Fans

[Owlslayer]

I rather liked him in the movie and see no problem with him being there. I mean, this is just for entertainment, not some sort of documentary of the Norse Gods.
So no harm done.

Also, he was really, really badass.

 

[ChromeAlchemist]

As a black person and a comic book nerd (which makes me a stickler for continuity), even I first wondered why they would make Heimdall black.

But then I actually watched the film, and since Thor and friends are depicted as Other-Worldly figures, almost alien in advancement, the colour of his skin actually didn't matter. I paid it no mind when I was watching it.

Plus, Idris is a great actor. From The Wire, to Luther, to this.

What these people are saying is fucking stupid though, it's easy to chat shit when you're anonymous.

 

[Harbinger_]

I'm sure that Mr. Elba is more than qualified to play Heimdall what I am disappointed in is that those working on the movie are not staying true to source material which is important when you are trying to create a movie based on a comic book based off of mythology from centuries upon centuries ago.

 

[gyroscopeboy]

If Hollywood is serious about diverse casting, how about they start with accurately portraying certain cultures before they jump straight to casting against type?

If we're getting so upset about how something might be seen as offensive, I've just the film for you.


Have you ever seen a grown man naked before?

Haha i love that movie.

"And Leon is getting laaaaarrrrrger."

 

[erbkaiser]

A black Heimdall the Norse god is just "blackwashing" and generally retarded.

A black Heimdall the alien masquerading as a God (or whatever the comic book history is) -- who cares.

It's still strange casting, but at least it's justifiable somewhat. Too bad they didn't also cast an asian or native American as a "god" as well, that'd make it a lot better to show that the Marvel Asgardians can appear as members any Race of Man.

 

[Trolldor]

I don't think a Norse God should be played by a black man.
The Norse Gods are of a particular culture, and their appearence is very much a part of their persona.
That doesn't mean he won't be good, or that it won't work, just that the colour of his skin WILL change how you percieve the character because his physical appearence will be different.
The norse gods were not and are not black, and the comic draws its designs partly from the fantastical, but also the very real basics of the norse gods.
Doesn't stop me from wanting to see the movie nor does it make me think I will be off put by it.

 

[WolfThomas]

With Thor I didn't have any problem because I didn't know the direct source material (I do ofcourse know Heimdahl from the Norse Mythology). I also discovered the asian guy in the Warriors Three wasn't asian at all (in the comics

Hogun the Grim, is the asian guy and in the comics he's always been depicted as being sort of mongolian. His origin is vague, but he's actually an adopted member of the Aesir coming from another people.

Why is this a big deal? The Civil Rights movement was 5 decades ago. What, now Marvel and Disney can pat themselves on the back for having not one but TWO black guys in their movie? This doesn't make up for all the other racist crap Hollywood still pulls to this day.

Kind of missed the point, they didn't hire Elba or Jackson because they're black, they hired them because they're great actors and in the case of Elba, they didn't let the matter of his skin colour change their decision. Which is progress for Hollywood, where previously "no race specified" meant white.

I don't think a Norse God should be played by a black man.
The Norse Gods are of a particular culture, and their appearence is very much a part of their persona.
That doesn't mean he won't be good, or that it won't work, just that the colour of his skin WILL change how you percieve the character because his physical appearence will be different.
The norse gods were not and are not black, and the comic draws its designs partly from the fantastical, but also the very real basics of the norse gods.
Doesn't stop me from wanting to see the movie nor does it make me think I will be off put by it.

The thing is they aren't Norse gods. Well not exactly. They're aliens with extreme powers and abilities that inspired the gods. That was very prominent in early Thor comics, more recently they're portrayed as straight up gods, but in the films, they're aliens pretty much.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I remember how people beat of Stephen Segal for playing Ghengis Khan.
Or how the wailed at that white dude who played the lead in Prince of Persia.

If we want to got on with that, please let the norse gods be played by norse people.
Nobody is talking about white washing, that movie had tons of rols for all ethnics in it. The female lead for example. Why does that have to be a white chick?

But if you accept norse gods with black skin, why not an interpretation of Huck Fin where Uncle Tom is just a poor white dude?

I give them credit for the fact that we are dealing with a very loose subject here, like ancient gods, depicted in a comicbook. That is like double-fictional and a long time ago. So there can't be any proof "Yo, they were white, alright", but then again, answer me this:

If a norse god can be played by a black person, how about a movie that depicts native african religions where some sort of deity or spirit is imbodied by a white person? Think of the reactions.

In the end I don't care for their casting choice, but I am confidend that this is one of these situations where Hollywood just can't do the right thing, because one side would always see reason to hoot.

This is pretty much the way I look at it. When it comes to casting, either for theater or film, looking the part is a big part of it. In my highschool play, Tiny Tim wound up being taller than his own father, because of the way the part was cast. While it worked, it was because we played it with a sense of humor, and also because, you know, it was a highschool play. But can anyone here honestly say they could handle a straight-faced Hollywood adaptation of A Christmas Carol with a six foot tall Tiny Tim? As far as race goes, if it's an integral part of the character, I'm sorry, but people who don't match the description probably shouldn't apply. Would people start complaining about racism if a black man were turned down for the role of Adolf Hitler in World War II movie? What about having Martin Luther King Jr. played by a white man in a movie about the civil rights era? At some point, you have to accept that looking the part does factor in to casting decisions, and there's nothing racist about it.

 

[evilstonermonkey]

However way you want to spin it, this character was turned black because they needed a token black character in the movie. I don't hold that as respectable in any sense of the word.

If that is why they chose him (and yeah, I'm realistic enough to admit that it probably is), then it is pretty reprehensible. But without having been there (because they aren't going to just come out and say "yeah, we chose him 'cos he's black") we can't be sure, and I like to think that at least a couple of times this situation has played out where they were planning on casting a white guy but had a black person apply for the role and just blow it out of the water. And as someone else ahs said, they had plenty of non-Asgardian roles that could have been used for a token.

 

[ChromeAlchemist]

-snip-

Y'know that'll probably never change though. It's mainly because we rarely see certain races accurately depicted, and people don't like that Hollywood "takes the easy way out" and casts established White actors instead of trying to make it look authentic.

It's kind of a double standard, but it's a bit unbalanced in comparison and doesn't really work when you flip it.

Also, the Norse gods aren't Norse, they're aliens. Ultimately I'm sure that's what allowed them to change the colour of Heimdall's skin.

 

[Mr.Squishy]

I'm not trying to be racist here, but let's see how well-received it would be to make a movie about native american, african or asian mythology and turn the one god that definitely shares the mythology's heritage and traits, and cast him/her/it as a white person. Go ahead, see how many people will complain about whitewashing.
Yet while that would be an atrocity, Norse mythology is everyone's playground to fuck around in. It just ain't fair - and some people would call it blasphemy on the same level as depicting Jesus as, say, a woman (I myself find this an interesting angle, but respect the christian faith enough to not deliberately insulting them by making a movie about it).
And I see other scandinavians here give their blessing to the movie. I say that's good, let them, it's their opinion. I, however, hate seeing my cultural heritage and the religion I would believe in were I not non-religious fucked over like this.

Now to await the honks of "RACIST!!!!!"

 

[Korolev]

It's a movie about fictional characters. If there were attempts to portray the Norse gods (who don't even exist) as black in a historical tome on Norse Mythology, then YES there WOULD be something to be annoyed about (because it simply wouldn't be true). But the comic book Thor isn't even based on the real MYTH. He's a re-imagining of an IMAGINARY character. Once your characters are fictional versions of things that ARE ALREADY FICTIONAL, it doesn't matter. The Movie Thor is NOT a documentary about Norse Mythology.

People need to stop being so bloody sensitive about this - White people, Black people, Asian people - stop being so gosh-darn sensitive about what skin colour a FICTIONAL CHARACTER is.

You know what? Previously I was hesitant to allow dark-skinned hobbits. But you know what? Let's have dark-skinned hobbits. Why not? Let's have white kung-fu masters. Let's have black Norse gods.

I can understand if you think it is betraying the comic source material - if your objections are based on the notion that the film should stay close to the source material, then that's a valid argument.

But jeez, stop being so sensitive. Don't watch the film if you think that fictional character based on an already fictional myth needs to be treated with "respect".

On that hand: People now aren't allowed to complain that white people played the kids in the Avatar: Last Airbender film. Because they were fictional characters too.

 

[mooncalf]

It isn't racist. It's Fanboys. Incongruency is their kryptonite, and they will *complain* about it untill fimbulwinter.

 

[itf cho]

It's a mythological character... I don't see how anyone can object about the choice of actor on purely racial grounds. And as for the comics purists, well, if Stan Lee and Marvel didn't object, and they're the creators of the comic book character... well, tough it out guys.

 

[ChromeAlchemist]

This is pretty much the way I look at it. When it comes to casting, either for theater or film, looking the part is a big part of it. In my highschool play, Tiny Tim wound up being taller than his own father, because of the way the part was cast. While it worked, it was because we played it with a sense of humor, and also because, you know, it was a highschool play. But can anyone here honestly say they could handle a straight-faced Hollywood adaptation of A Christmas Carol with a six foot tall Tiny Tim? As far as race goes, if it's an integral part of the character, I'm sorry, but people who don't match the description probably shouldn't apply. Would people start complaining about racism if a black man were turned down for the role of Adolf Hitler in World War II movie? What about having Martin Luther King Jr. played by a white man in a movie about the civil rights era? At some point, you have to accept that looking the part does factor in to casting decisions, and there's nothing racist about it.

As I said above, I very much agree, but Thor and friends are pretty much aliens, and not hovering above the clouds of Scandinavia, which is why they got away with it. This isn't based on Norse Mythology, it's based on Marvel lore.

 

[iLikeHippos]

He could had been a fat ebony female for all I care. So long as he is playing the character, not literally being the visualized character, it's fine. Because no Norse is black! But actors might be, and he is a good one.

 

[WolfThomas]

People you need to realise that in the movie they aren't actual gods. They are aliens. This is not an educational documentary on norse mythology. It's an adapted version of comic canon. People stop being so serious.

Plus he was awesome, made what could have been a very minor role stand out.

 

[circularlogic88]

It's not like the movie is solely focused on Idris Elba's character to begin with. Last I checked, it was about a fictional Norse god beating up fictional monsters with a fictional hammer... but people can't suspend their disbelief for a secondary character from a comic that is in and of itself a reimagining of the Prose Edda and Poetic Edda.

Lest we forget: Nick Fury was white! But because the Ultimates Vol. 1 made a joke about who they'd have cast as themselves and because in this continuity Nick Fury was black and I am guessing was highly inspired by Samuel L. Jackson, they made a self-referencing comment about how the character looked like Samuel L. Jackson. Iron Man movie comes out, and people are ecstatic to see Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury.

Honestly, unless Heimdall wills himself into existence and says Idris Elba is doing a shitty portrayal of him, then I don't really care.

 

[Voodoomancer]

The whole thing is ridiculous. Who cares, as long as he isn't a horrible actor? Also...

... a figure often referred to as the "Whitest of the Gods."

This is called irony, and it's delicious.