White voice actors resign from voicing Black or Ethnic characters. Should said characters only be voiced by Black or Ethnic people, respectively?

[Physics-Man]

As far as I can tell, all the white voice actors who voiced Ethnic or Black Animated characters have resigned from their roles due to the recent trend that they should be voiced by Ethnic or Black people, respectively. I think it's funny how there was no denying blacks and ethnics the roles of obviously European characters like Mary Jane or Annie.

• https://www.standard.co.uk/stayingin/tvfilm/white-actors-non-white-cartoon-characters-a4486031.html?amp
• https://www.bet.com/news/national/2020/06/29/white-actors-stepping-down-voicing-animated-black-characters.amp.html
• https://www.moms.com/white-actors-wont-voice-black-characters/amp/
• https://www.newsbreak.com/news/1589958621393/the-insidious-racism-of-white-actors-voicing-black-animated-characters
• https://www.wmagazine.com/story/animated-voice-actors-jenny-slate-big-mouth-race/amp/
• https://www.popsugar.com/entertainment/jenny-slate-big-mouth-and-kristen-bell-central-park-recast-47573848/amp
• https://www.pennlive.com/entertainment/2020/07/white-actors-are-resigning-from-voicing-characters-of-color-on-animated-shows.html?outputType=amp
• https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1232069
• https://www.cnn.com/videos/media/2020/06/25/kristen-bell-jenny-slate-central-park-big-mouth-black-actors-orig-mss.cnn/video/playlists/atv-trending-videos/
• https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/2020/7/22/21326824/white-voice-actors-black-characters-cartoons-whitewashing

Yes

No

Other

[hellionthesagereborn]

If we do this, we need to do it both ways, no white character is allowed to be played by anyone who isn't white (there goes most modern franchise roles). So unless they are willing to play this game to its inevitable conclusion (most black and minority actors getting typecasted and screwed over), I think this is a stupid idea (unless a bunch of leftist minority actors and actors are calling for this in which case I think we should absolutely do it just to put them in their place (I'm a sucker for malicious compliance)).

[cth96190]

If these lefty idiots want to virtue signal by making themselves unemployed, go ahead.
What they do is called acting.
They appear to not understand that acting is about giving a performance, during which you pretend to be someone who you are not.

[OlderAndWiser]

Hollywood hypocrisy is nothing new.

[NamerOfStars]

White people don't have ethnicities now? I guess that whole "past 6,000 years of Balkan history" was a just a series of misunderstandings, then? And the Holocaust? And pretty much everything that's ever happened to or in Ireland?

That's not just me being flippant about a question of semantics, it's about not judging white people by a different set of standards than everyone else. Darth Vader is a white character voiced by a black man- is that no longer acceptable? Godzilla is an Oceanic lizard monster played by a Japanese man- they couldn't even get the species right for that one. Optimus Prime isn't even an animal, but he's voiced by a white guy- do you see how stupid this is?

Now if you've got a situation where actors of particular ethnicities are being denied work on that basis, that's a different story- that's against the law, as well it should be. And it can be pretty difficult to prove that. But what you should do as a casting director is to NOT discriminate. Hire the best person for the job, regardless of demographic factors.

[Kaneki05]

I don't think it matters really for voice acting if they can do it right. It's not offensive really to learn how to talk different for a role.
But i really hate i swear hate. When a white character becomes black, Like for example Jill Valentine from resident evil in the new upcoming show for netflix will be played by a black actress. At what point was Jill black?
It makes 0 sense to me how they can take a well know character and just change there race for no reason. Let's just make Ada wong not Chinese no more, let's just make Luke cage and black panther white. It get's rid of everything about the character really does smh.
If you want to make your character and you make them black, white whatever that's the way that character should stay. Really dumb to change the whole race of a character just cause. Yeah they hate gingers in the industry they all get played by someone who isn't ginger one bit like that photo. It's not racist it is simple preserving what the character is meant to be like and what background and race there from.

[BeMuse]

Not exactly a selling point to get me to pay to watch a movie or subscribe to a TV service… And they wonder why American viewership has declined. They sold their bungholes to China trying to enter their market and gain capital injection. There are too many whores in Hollywood. They are selling out American culture so China can shovel divisive propaganda.

[BadFurDayGerg]

No that's just white liberal forcing people. To do stuff.

Then the white liberal mindset infects black women to complain about the voice acting.

Cree summers
And Phil Lamar are in my top 10 voice actors of all time and they are black.

It's voice acting anyone can do it.

[aWes0MeNeSs]

Personally, I don't even see how this is an issue. I thought we were all equal and the color of our skin didn't matter? If so, then who cares about the ethnicity of a voice actor, and whether or not it matches that of a fictional character? Aren't we all just people? That's my two cents.

To me, making a big deal about race just creates more division and racism.

[Physics-Man]

I also thought that race was a Social Construct?

[aWes0MeNeSs]

Exactly!

[Massageman]

This whole "issue" is really a non-issue, at best. They should be voiced by the person most capable of rendering a believable voice for the character.

It's like saying only go to a restaurant owned by this group or that group. Phooey! Go to the one that has a clean shop, good food and service at a reasonable price, regardless of who runs it. It the food they offer is of a particular origin and some people don't like it, I'm sure there will be others who will.

[JimboGB]

If you're black and have a problem with a white person pronouncing a particular voice, you're pathetic. If you're white and feel this is a problem, you're also pathetic. People need to start calling out these jokers for what they're. Skin colour doesn't matter unless you're a racist.

[JimboGB]

These people are thinking of racial politics before the jokes within comedy. We need fewer people like this. Racial awareness is racism!

[Virgo31]

What’s that gonna do? Like yours actor, you’re supposed to be playing someone your not. It’s not really gonna help if your resign anyway so what’s the point?

[Darcia]

For one, give more opportunities to the race that deserves the spotlight. In this case, blacks and ethnic groups.

[Virgo31]

@Darcia uh the same could be said for black people voicing white people.

[Darcia]

I never said it couldn’t. It can go both ways. But this opportunity is for blacks not for whites. Of course, they deserve it the most.

[purplepoppy]

Isn't the definition of acting playing a role that isn't yourself. Do we stop American actors putting on British or French accents. And what of animal characters in cartoons' are we going to have to find talking cats and dogs.

[TooDrunk4Sex]

its one thing to open up more opportunities for talented people who might have been overlooked for some jobs. that benefits everyone. its another thing to forcefully shut doors left and right with the expectation that this will somehow balance things out. i would rather live in a world where people give less of a shit about the politics so that talent and quality can slide in of any color rather than just replacing whatever assumed preference for one with an overbearing preference for another

[TooDrunk4Sex]

its like they replaced some sort of fuzzy and nebulous sort of discrimination with a definite sort of discrimination. for all the what-ifs about people being overlooked for these voice acting roles, they have replaced it with a definite resignation of those who filled them. they replaced questionable discrimination with definite discrimination

[IAMNathanael]

Well I'll tell you man. All my life I made Luke Skywalker my idol. I can't even begin to tell you my devastion when I found out Mark Hamill's not a Jedi. He never even blew up a Death Star.


Just kidding. But that's the point of acting right? To pretend to be some one you aren't. And if a white person can pull off doing the voice of a black person then they've got some pretty great acting chops.

[jshm2]

Well, considering American education is so dumbed down that shit-for-brains take movies and cartoons more seriously than books, it's a step in the right direction.

These actors realise they cannot speak about or for a culture and race that isn't theirs. Even if it is just for money and the lols.

[John_Galt]

Totally ridiculous. Everyone always thought that nuclear war or economic collapse would be the demise of America!! Who could have predicted that it would be the simple replacement of common sense, with “wokeness”!!!

[MCheetah]

It's like, people are quite literally too stupid to know what acting is. nowadays. Or in this case, *voice* acting. Please don't show me posts like these; it makes me lose even more faith in humanity.

[WindAtMyBack]

It's called ACTING !!!

Acting, by definition, means playing a role of someone other than who you really are.

[Bananaman177]

1488

[Anonymous]

Of course not, thats completely retarded.

They are VOICE ACTORS, so as they aren't seen on screen the only thing that matters is whether or not they can make the right noises, this is not black face and people need to calm the fuck down.

[SuccessfulHornDog]

The actor with the best voice for the character should play it

[Darcia]

Mostly blacks and ethnic characters can do it better than any other.

[Physics-Man]

@Darcia

What objective, concrete, irrefutable proof do you have of this?

[Darcia]

Why do you need proof? It is common sense you can see as broad as day. Simple. If you want to find research on it I suggest looking up Google Scholar & EBSCO it’ll be more relevant and reliable in your searches for proof.

[Physics-Man]

@Darcia

I'm going to repeat the same thing I did to another idiot I'm talking to here. What genetic differences are there within the vocal chords of the different races that would make them absolutely irreproducible to the same degree by other races? They have been successfully replicated for decades without anyone complaining. There are NO studies that show that white voice actors are unable to replicate ethnic voices to the same perfection of ethnic People! None!

[TadCurious]

This is all due to the ridiculous woke panic of 2020. The whole point of being an actor (whether on screen or voice) is to play a person you are not.