GroundPounder
Well-Known Member
Yeah. One of my favorite TV shows is Longmire. The show does a decent job (I think) of portraying white and native american lives in modern day Wyoming, although I admit I don’t know enough about modern day Wyoming (sadly) or life on Native American reservations (sadly) to be a good judge. The show’s top native american character is actually played by an actor (Lou Diamond Philips) from the Philippines who officially adopted the Native American/ plains indians culture (Sioux tribe). Lou is a strong advocate and activist for Native American causes off screen. Also, because I really liked the Native American characters on the show, I looked up their bios as well. Most are technically descended from a different tribe than the tribe of the character they portray on screen, so take that for what it’s worth. I have no issue with that but I think it’s relevant to the conversation about how granular we want to get with race and cinema/theater.
Hollywood also has a history of casting Asian Americans of descent from Asia-Pacific country X in roles of Asian Americans of descent from Asia-Pacific country Y.
This is just a fundamental reality of acting and theater - where somebody is portraying a person they are not.
Robert Taylor (Australian actor) - Wikipedia
Walt is played by an Australian. If we are going to be intellectually honest, I guess he's out too. He changed his accent to sound like someone he is not, and deprived someone else the oppurunity to reflect their own culture. Instead he Austrail-splains to the audience from a postion of Austral-Pacfic privledge.
As long as we are on the warpath, how about we cancel Cher, Redbone, Tim McGraw and everyone else who is not a Native American who used native American imagery in their songs?
And as long as we are going full tilt on the crazy train, a guy from the Phillipines adopting another culture is ok?
If he was of Norwegian heritage and was fair skinned and blond, would that have been ok? Same passion and good hearted intentions, but would he have gotten Twitter/FB/WOKE approval?
This has an end that is not good for anyone.
Last edited: