The rapid evolution of progressives values is putting Hollywood in a tough spot. I can’t watch a film or television from the 1980s or 1990s without noticing jokes and situations that would never be allowed today because it might trigger the snowflakes. In fact, things are changing so quickly that Hollywood clearly can’t decide how to handle it.
The hit 1990s show Friends is a classic example. Years after the show ended, the show’s creators are still getting flak for its lack of diversity, and they’re apologizing for it. Other shows, such as Game of Thrones, have also been criticized for being “too white,” and the showrunners of a new spinoff of Game of Thrones have promised to create a show that was “not another bunch of white people on the screen.”
Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman blames the lack of diversity in the show on her internalization of systemic racism — which she only noticed after the murder of George Floyd. To make amends for her crimes, Kaufman pledged $4 million to Brandeis University, her alma mater, to establish an endowed professorship in the school’s African and African American studies department.
But, according to Lisa Kudrow, one of the six main cast members on the show, it was actually a “good thing” that more black people weren’t part of the cast.
“Well, I feel like it was a show created by two people who went to Brandeis and wrote about their lives after college,” Kudrow told The Daily Beast. “And for shows especially, when it’s going to be a comedy that’s character-driven, you write what you know. They have no business writing stories about the experiences of being a person of color.”
I don’t necessarily agree with Kudrow, but it’s true that white writers have been criticized for writing black characters. Apparently, if you’re white you can’t write “authentic” black characters. Perhaps male writers should only write male characters, female writers should only write female characters, black writers, black characters, etc.
In short, Hollywood can’t even decide whether a 90s television show should have had more minority characters to be a more “authentic” reflection of New York City in the 1990s or if it was just fine as it was because the all-white show creators couldn’t write “authentic” black characters anyway. Are you confused yet?
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It’s not just a question of authentic writing, either. Last year, actress Sarah Silverman had a hissy fit over the announcement that Catholic actress Kathryn Hahn would be portraying Jewish actress and comedienne Joan Rivers in a now-scrapped biopic miniseries. Because, apparently, only Jews should portray Jews on screen.
Actor Tom Hanks also recently said that he should never have been in the lead role of the movie Philadelphia because, as a straight man, he shouldn’t have portrayed a gay character.
“I don’t think people would accept the inauthenticity of a straight guy playing a gay guy,” Hanks said.
Hollywood isn’t exactly known for its commitment to authenticity. Disney’s live-action reboot of Lady and The Tramp was made more diverse by making the characters Jim Dear and Darling an interracial couple—even though interracial marriage was illegal at the time and place the movie was set.
Some people were upset that Freddie Mercury wasn’t played by an LGBT actor in the 2018 biopic Bohemian Rhapsody but had no problem with the movie erasing Mercury’s bisexuality in favor of establishing him as gay.
Authenticity is not what’s currently driving Hollywood. It’s affirmative action run amok—a ruse for establishing quotas of “underrepresented groups” in casting and writing and all other aspects of entertainment production. If the movie Apollo 13 were made today, I’m sure one of the astronauts would have to be portrayed by a black actor (screw historical accuracy), and there would probably have to be a same-sex love story added as well. Obviously, half the people at Mission Control would have to be transgender. Gotta appease marginalized communities.
I really wish I were joking.
