Why is Spider-Man White?- Page 6

[tazber]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:39pm

I checked out somewhere on page 3, now I'm just enjoying watching the implosion.

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:46pm

"And I think people could save themselves oodles of typing time time if they just said, "I don't want to see a black person in the role because I don't want to see a black person in the role."

That pretty much hits the nail on the head...but then it would have been a short thread.

I'm amazed to see people getting so bent out of shape about the idea...and it's not really even being considered at this point. This dude just tweeted that he would like to play spider man and look how up in arms people are getting!

[twinbelters]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:51pm

I have said several times before that if Spiderman is to suddenly be recast as black there should be a substantive reason for it. I'm not saying anything even remotely racist and the reading of "know your place, boy" is radical and your own. Spidey can be black, or pygmy, or whatever (Peter Porker comes to mind, though not comfortably) as long as it is justified in the storytelling and not "tra la la another Spidey adventure, but I'm African American now!"

I'm, AGAIN, excited at the prospect of DonIald Glover writing a convincing reason why Spiderman should be black--in the form of a treatment, a screenplay, an off-Broadway musical--whatever it is. You do know he is a writer, yes? Started his television career writing for 30 Rock and then moved on to stand up and now is cast in Community. AGAIN, I'm a FAN of DONALD GLOVER. I'd like to see him create his own superhero if he is as driven about this as he seems to be.

I'm not comparing black people to platypi nor am I comparing Shakespeare to Stan Lee. (Although funny books are a new mythology and are as steeped in our culture as Shakespeare, arguably)

I think naysayers are reading what they want to read at this point and not what I am actually saying.

Just talked to my very black coworker Reginald and he chimes in with, "Making the comic-originated character Spiderman black at this point in the franchise would compromise the integrity of the character." Plus, he thinks it would be a commercial failure. He said all this even when I posed him with my Fringe-inspired idea of making Donald Glover Spiderman a parallel universe Peter Parker.

I don't think anyone should compare Prince of Persia to Spiderman, but if that's how you feel about it so be it.

Read some Brian Michael Bendis scribed Ultimate Spiderman and read the best the property can offer. Have any of you actually read a run of Spiderman at one point or another?

kthxbei... (oh, and I'm American and 100% not racist. Equality now!)

[twinbelters]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:53pm

Oh, and I love Millar's Superman Red Son which actually provides a fascinating and well thought out reason why he placed Superman in the Soviet Union.

I'm outta heah! Thanks for your thoughts.

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:55pm

See..here's the part where my brain shuts off. How does making him black...change his character...at all? As far as I know, and I think I'm actually pretty well versed in the Spiderman mythology (umm..college)there is nothing in it at all that ever references race or ethnicity. It simply would change his skin color. It would make zero difference to the mythology of Peter Parker...at all.

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:57pm

I wonder if there is an alternate universe where there is a black me arguing about why there should be a white spiderman.

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 5:59pm

But now that I think more about it...if it were a "true" alternate reality than the black version of me would be arguing the opposite side of me so he would think spiderman should stay black. I think. It does get confusing...now I'm starting to see why this can't work.

[Craww]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:07pm

You can be not racist and still say things that are racially wrongheaded. It's sort of an inevitability that's built into white privilege.

Having a black friend who agrees with you doesn't make you any more or less right.

I just don't see how they'd have to explain Peter Parker being black. I don't get it. I don't see what that changes about the core characteristics of the character. It's not like he hasn't been drawn with differing hairstyles and facial features. Not every comic book Peter Parker is the same white guy, visually. So what does it matter if he's just...not white?

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:11pm

Exactly...it's like saying Spiderman always has to be Tobey Macguire.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:13pm

Ok all you guys let me ask you this - could Jonah Hill play Spiderman? Is it ok to alter what's commonly perceived as "who the character is" so he can be overweight?

I'm not asking as a joke or trying to be funny but Genuinely want to know what the difference is.

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:19pm

Man I would be so much more likely to actually go see THAT reboot.

[degrassifan]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:23pm

Well, if King Triton can be black then I see no problem with Spiderman/Peter Parker being a different race.

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:28pm

For some reason it's ok in theater. I think I read that somewhere up there.

This is why I wish studios would stop giving any credence to the hardcore fanboys. It limits their creativity and they will never (as a whole) be satisfied anyway. As long as they stayed true to the spirit of the original I think most people would be happy if it was a good movie.

[Calvin]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:35pm

The difference is being morbidly obese is a physical characteristic that is an obvious hindrance to the acrobatics Spiderman does, a core portion of the story. Skin color is not.

[strummergirl]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:38pm

Isn't the tubby super hero crime-fighter happening with Seth Rogen as Green Hornet (Directed by Michel Gondry no less)?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 6:39pm

Calvin, your argument holds no water because everyone knows black people are better at sports than white people.

[JP2]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 7:57pm

Let's also make Storm white. And how about a Black Panther movie staring Chris Evans?

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 6/3/10 at 8:05pm

Like I saw on Twitter earlier, if Jake Gyllenhaal can play a Persian, a black man can play Spider Man.

Persian WITH A BRITISH ACCENT. WTF was that? Ahmadinejad does not sound like the Queen!


Spidey can be black, or pygmy, or whatever (Peter Porker comes to mind, though not comfortably) as long as it is justified in the storytelling and not "tra la la another Spidey adventure, but I'm African American now!"

What, because it would be totally justified to have a completely different white actor show up as Peter Parker in the next movie?