Reel Talk: Regarding the Upside

There is a constant push in Hollywood for positive representation and diversity. Typically this is applied to race and gender, but it also applies to people with physical disabilities. That last discussion was recently reignited by The Upside, an American remake of the French hit The Intouchables, where Bryan Cranston plays a wheel-chair bound millionaire. Cranston defended his casting by saying keeping him out of the role is a slippery slope towards what an actor is or isn't able to do, and of course the bad casting decision fallback: marketability. So today I thought I would dive into where I think mindsets like Cranston come from, and what they fail to realize.

The Actor's Mindset

Acting is a weird job. You pretend to play other people for money and it's far harder than it seems, especially when you're trying to convey complicated emotions that differ from your own experience. This disconnect is why the "method acting" approach, or living and breathing as the character on screen and off, appeals to so many film actors. What better way to emote as some than to live as them? Sometimes you get great results like an Oscar-winning Daniel Day-Lewis performance and other times you get Jared Leto sending his castmates used condoms to channel the Joker (f***ing gross dude, seek help).

There are limits. It's going to weird out your family if you come home in costume as Spider-Man or insist on being fatally stabbed because "your character gets stabbed." Authenticity only goes so far and at some point you will mimic or approximate your character's experience. Very good actors do their best to make their make believe feel real.

As a result many actors are...defensive about their ability to play certain roles. 

Should a woman without children be able to play a mother? Can someone without war-time experience play a soldier? Can anyone play someone from another time period ever? To them it feels like a slippery slope to saying they can only play people whose life experiences, including age, sexuality, etc. match their own.

And if you can invoke your bankability as a star at the same time that sounds reasonable doesn't it? Well no.

Star-Power Is Way Less of a Thing Now

Let's get this argument out of the way. Star power isn't as big as it once was. There are some stars that can bolster a standard movie's grosses above the usual levels or get it made (i.e. there's no way Skyscraper gets made with The Rock's involvement). But even the Rock's biggest movie grosses are established franchise films (The Fast and the Furious series) or established brands (Disney's Moana).

Franchises, good word of mouth, and interesting concepts get you much further than having Bryan Cranston or Kevin Hart does. Both of them have massive flops in their filmography so there must've been something about two people from disparate worlds bonding in fun and funny ways that got butts in seats. Like I dunno, the deeply divided political climate that makes people feel helpless or like connection with folks on the other side is impossible. Just an idea. Let's get to the acting bits.

The White Cis-Male Actor Experience vs. Everyone Else

It's hard to get acting jobs. Like really hard. Especially if you're a new name. Even if you're a talented handsome straight white man you need a thousand lucky breaks to get one chance, let alone get enough to become a household name.

Now imagine you're an actor of another race. Or a visibly queer/non-binary person. Some casting directors have a progressive mindset, but there are a lot of roles you won't be considered for. Hell Bond fans freaked out about a blond Daniel Craig playing the character and Idris Elba (one of the most charming handsome men in existence) being considered for it.

What if you if you have a physical disability? Will you ever be considered for a role where your disability isn't integral to your part? How many roles like that are there? 

Now imagine that there's a role that's a near match with your day to day disability experience...and they cast an able-bodied actor.

This is a major part of the issue.

Cranston being cast eliminates opportunity and visibility for a community and actors that rarely get the opportunities they deserve. Roles like this are few and far between and seeing them taken by someone without a disability is disheartening, especially when you might have more personal insight into a character's experience than the person they chose.

Where's the Line?

"But if Cranston can't play someone in a wheelchair who can he play?" I hear the contrarians saying as part of their bad faith argument.

That's a complex question without an easy answer. In a perfect world I'd like to say anyone can play anyone because we're all equal under our Sun God Ra. 

But that's not where we're at. Not everyone gets a chance to play everyone because prejudices (active or passive) play a larger role than anyone wants to admit.

Hollywood has a storied history of treating the core tenants of someone's identity as a costume. Straight white men have played people of other races, transgender individuals, gay characters, and people with physical and mental disabilities. These are elements of these individuals identity's that set them apart from the assumed norm. Even if this is done with the utmost respect and care, it can get dicey very quickly.

So where's the line?

I'd refer to the communities involved because that line changes over time. John Lightgow playing a transgender woman in The World According to Garp is a sympathetic portrayal of a trans character, but that casting in a modern setting doesn't make sense when we know there are plenty of amazing trans actors at the ready.

But if you don't ask and hide behind the "magic of acting" instead of listening and learning you not only sound like an ass, you're reinforcing the idea that someone's identity and experience is something you can easily replicate. And that's not true.

Being a good ally means checking in and adjusting accordingly, even if it means turning a role down.

As Jameela Jamil said about being offered the role of a deaf woman:

I said it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to take that role and they should find a brilliant deaf woman to play that role. I think you have to make those choices and not be too greedy and make space rather than take space. … I don’t want to be part of erasure.

Being a good ally means making space. Make space everyone.