There is no pleasing us. Try all you want, it’s impossible to make us happy. At least where the movie is concerned.
It’s specifically the movies that do it, for some reason. Make a comic into a weekly TV show or a cartoon or a video game or a Happy Meal, and our patience is somehow bottomless. There are people who unabashedly, unironically love Lois & Clark. Love it, even as it bends the lactose-intolerant in half. I still have fingernail-sized scars around my eye sockets from that first season of Smallville, but there are many among us who would count those episodes as some of their favorite television in the history of the medium. If pressed, many of them would end up having no stronger praise than “It was just so great to see Superman on television.” Even if she is having pillow fights and sleepovers in her thirties, singing along to Katy Perry all the while, people will be saying the same thing about Wonder Woman in a year. Doesn’t matter who the actress is. Doesn’t matter what the costume looks like. It’s a thrill just to see her taking up NBC’s time.
It’s like the medium of television is a popular kid, and comics are so happy to be invited to its party that we don’t care about the impending pig blood.
Corner any number of those Lois & Clark fans, though, and say “Amy Adams.” The percentage who cross themselves and spit on the ground will be statistically significant. Have your earplugs handy. All that patience for TV budgets and creative license is suddenly a dim memory of a happier time.
We hate who they’ve cast in the movie, no matter who it is.
(Well… almost. If Patrick Stewart hadn’t been cast as the original Professor X, I assume geeks would have organized and burned down Movies. Other than him, though.)
I don’t know why, but women’s hair color seems to be a particular trigger. Many people who are eagerly anticipating a movie in which Professor X has a full, lustrous head of hair were complaining vehemently ten years ago that Famke Janssen is not a natural redhead. Some of them, privately, are still a little steamed about this. Part of the reason we’re still publicly plumbing the depths of John Byrne’s psyche is that he saw Jessica Alba go blonde for Fantastic Four.
Hair color is the most fixable thing in film. You can fix it with some goop from the drug store in half an hour. Amy Adams is plucky and winning and has been nominated for three (3) honest-to-God Oscars. When she is in yet another terrible Superman movie a year from now, the terribleness of it will not be her fault. It certainly won’t be because her hair is usually not brown.
(I should probably just be steering clear of Superman adaptations. At this point, I’m like a kid in the burn unit looking for a stove to high-five.)
People who know guys can’t really fly have said, “Carol from Green Lantern isn’t really a brunette!” within three clicks of this page. Said it like harm has been done to them. Sinestro isn’t really pink, either, guys. But Manic Panic is too much to contemplate.
The last person to play Lois Lane on screen was Kate Bosworth. When I think back upon that masterpiece, I remember Superman (the most powerful being on earth) fighting a bald old man over his shady real estate dealings, again. I remember Superman’s first grader murdering some dudes with a piano, which bothered no one. I remember Superman using his x-ray vision to stalk his ex-girlfriend, as your hero will. Here is my secret shame: I cannot at all remember what color Kate Bosworth’s hair was in that movie.
Did they dye it? Did they leave it blonde? I cannot recall. It had no bearing on what a masterpiece the movie was. Neither will Amy Adams’ gingerhood.
Maybe we care so much because the comic reading experience is so personal. It makes experts of us all. There’s a very specific voice in so many heads when Medusa or Janet van Dyne speak.
Maybe we have been hurt too many times. We have our Ghost Riders, our Wanteds, our Jonahs Hex.
In my own way, I’m just as bad. Worse, really. If there’s a hell, I’m going there to be a casting director. I am completely incompetent at matching roles to stars; all I can do is say, “Not him.” I never would have come up with Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark in a hundred lifetimes; all I could do during the Iron Man development process was go, “Tom Cruise? Ack! All wrong!… Nicolas Cage? Ack! Disaster!” When Downey was announced, I was literally angry at myself for not thinking of it. “What are you even good for?”
Note: casting Iron Man has never been my job. Or even a hobby. Well, sort of a hobby, I guess.
But what do I know, anyway? The Spider-Man movies were a worldwide phenomenon, and there aren’t two people in them who I thought were right for their roles. It’s basically J.K. Simmons and Alfred Molina, and the rest is a free-for-all. Tobey Maguire? All wrong. Aunt May? Too dumpy. Robbie Robertson? Too doughy.
What’s that? How do I stack up in the “too dumpy!” competition? Mind your own business. I’m working on it.
Jim Mroczkowski knows this: Lea Thompson is all wrong for Beverly Switzler.Twitter is his refuge.
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I think I’ve (finally) reached the point where I ignore all my opinions about the actor/actress and who I think should play the role. I acknowledge that I have no idea how to cast a film.
(I reserve the right to [childishly] complain about the casting AFTER having seen the relevant film.)
I don’t think I ever really complained about how an actor looks when given an established role. If the person doesn’t look like said character, it’s pretty obvious the hair/make-up department will do their job to give what the director wants.
Case in point Amy Adams: I have no problem in terms of looks of her being Lois. I’m sure she’s gonna look fine for the movie. But I’m not a fan of the actress overall so that’s why I’m a little ‘meh’ on the choice.
For cryin out loud, when are people going to learn these movies are only BASED on the comics. Doesn’t mean they have to keep every single detail the same, if they did that then what would be the point of us going to see them since we’d already know every single detail of what is going to happen?
Seriously I will sacrifice hair color for a amazing actress playing a key role anyday.
@justinsayne YES! It’s all about new and hopefully interesting interpretations. I love it when people talk about “That’s not how it is in the comcis!” Well, which comics? What era? What writer? What artist?
I am going to say something controversial. Lois Lane does not even need to be a brunette.
I’m glad you wrote this.
And @ThomasKaters – I even went out of my way to pick a drawing of Lois that showed her hair with a distinct auburn hue. It did no good to prevent the complaints.
these complaints never make sense to me. You’d rather have an ok actress with the right hair color than a great talent who needs to take a trip to a hair salon? There is A LOT more to the craft of acting than just looking the part. Good actors can transform themselves.
Comic fans NEED to find something to bitch about or their not having fun. Thats the real issue.
@ThomasKaters
Completely Agree
I am going to say something even more controversial. Lois Lane doesn’t even need to be white. Or a woman.
Lucius Lane — Superman’s gay, black reporter love interest. 21st century, people. C’mon, you know you want to see it!
But seriously — I think Amy Adams is a great choice. And hair color seems to be that nitpick that everyone has before the movie, and NO one talks about once the movie is out. As Jim wisely notes — I’ve never heard any significant portion of fandom say “Man, that Dark Knight movie was RUINED because Christian Bale’s hair was too brown.” Or, you know, whatever. If the movie is good, people won’t care. If it’s bad, people won’t care because they’ll have plenty of larger complaints than hair color.
Right now, Amy Adams is one of the few things I’m looking FORWARD to in the Superman movie. Much more nervous about the writing and direction. 😉
But what is wrong – for once- Just having an actress look like the character they are playing.
Is it impossible to get a brunetter- the most dominant hair color type on the planet to play a brunette character?
Just saying doesnt have to be a deal breaker but hell it Could happen – couldn’t it?
It wouldn’t be a comic book movie without ridiculous unfounded complaints about casting long before the movie actually comes out, though, would it?
I’m so sick of it all I’m on the verge of hoping there’s never a comic book movie ever made.
@ericmci –which Lois Lane is she supposed to look like? She looks exactly like one of the 10,000 different comic depiction’s i’m sure.
maybe it has to do with the hotness factor, did people complain about Scarlet Johanson’s hair color? (seriously I don’t know)
Hotness trumps Oscar cred?
I saw the first X-Men movie before I ever read an X-Men comic. Therefore, it was years before I realized Jean Grey was supposed to be a redhead (they might have done something to Famke’s hair but I didn’t think “this is, for some people, Jean’s only defining trait for many; I thought, maybe, ‘Xenia Onatopp got highlights!’). Also, for what it’s worth, movie-Jean-Grey is a neuroscientist. Comic book Jean Grey . . .I think was a swimsuit model for six months in 1965? I have never heard anybody complain about this.
30 years of terrible Superman movies is what I was basing it on; not hair color.
“Is it impossible to get a brunetter- the most dominant hair color type on the planet to play a brunette character?”
Changing hair color is easy, so most casting directors don’t put too much weight on it. (FYI Christopher Reeve’s hair wasn’t black.) The hard part is finding the right mix of talent, star power, and interest.
I have irrational issues with blondes v. brunettes. I know they’re irrational, but I still end up making ill-thought out comments about casting.
The only times I’ve heard complaints about hair is when the actress herself was right for the part and it was a minor complaint in the shadow of “Mary Jane is too self-involved” or “Why is Elizabeth Banks playing Sue Storm instead of Jessica Alba?”
Sorry. *Why isn’t*
I love it when people complain about complaining 😛
I don’t think TV is as big a deal because it’s a more much personal. private medium, if Smallville had Howie Mandell play Lex Luthor’s grandfather most people would think it was funny. But in a movie there’s generally people around who are only exposed to characters from this medium once or so a year. Smallville has a dedicated male 14-40 audience that sustains it, most probably comic fans at this point, as an interview with a show producer said. The demo totally flipped from girls to guys on that show.
When we see something that’s different, divergent, or ill fitting with our views in a movie we have a desire to reconcile it, say “Oh in the comic.” because movies often take extreme liberties with our fictional realities and write everything off as “Well it’s based on a comic book whatayagonnado?”
A movie is a matter of public record while a tv show generally feels a lot more disposable and temporary. Plus there will always be the next episode. We want our movies to get it right because they only come along every so often.
Who knows though maybe this movie will turn out to be pretty ga’hoode after all.
I could not care less if Lois Lane was black, much less what color her hair is.
“When she is in yet another terrible Superman movie a year from now, the terribleness of it will not be her fault. It certainly won’t be because her hair is usually not brown.”
I’d put money against this prediction.
@srh1son Waitaminute! Amy Adams isn’t hot?! Then why does my brain get a boner when I see her?
@JNewcomb Which part? That the Superman movie will not be terrible, or that the terribleness will not be her fault? 😉
@ericmci: Yup, I always find its better to cast based purely on hair color rather than talent. I mean its not like there is a history in Hollywood of actors and actress changing their look, weight, hair color, eye color, skin tone for a movie role. Hardly ever happens…
Amy Adams is a great actress. So for me, she’s great choice for Lois Lane. Not only is she is very great actress, she always is very much the spunky, plucky type that Lois calls for. I would much rather have a capable actor who embodies the character as opposed to a bad one who looks like the character.
But let me play devil’s advocate to all the cool kids bragging about how un-nerdy and above it all they are, just for a second. That’s what the internet is for, right?
Yes, we are dealing with fans complaining that certain actors don’t fit their ideals of a character aesthetically. And in the grand scheme of making a good movie, I think most of us can agree that such things really don’t matter. But I think Jimski is over-simplifying things just a tad here. I don’t think it’s strictly a matter of hair coloring that people take offense to. It’s bigger than that.
Hair coloring isn’t a stand-alone genetic feature for most people. Different types of hair coloring generally tend to go along with other facial features. Be it eye color or skin tone. Obviously hair color doesn’t matter, because it can be changed like that. They dyed the hair of Jessica Alba, Kate Bosworth, & Kirsten Dunst in their movies. But that doesn’t change the rest of their looks. To me, when people complain about actors, it’s much more about overall looks as opposed to simply hair color. Amy Adams could have the exact same hair color, and I don’t think you would have people making the same comments if she wasn’t so fair-skinned.
I have a different issue with all of this. I don’t love it when they get actresses who don’t have the same general look as the characters. Not because they don’t look like what I have in my head. But because they always feel the need to try and shoehorn them into the perceived character mold. And as someone who feels that most woman look their best with their natural hair coloring (back to the whole part about matching the rest of their features), it always comes off slightly off to me. I could care less if they look exactly like the character. But I don’t necessarily think Jessica Alba looked great as a blonde, Kate Bosworth as a brunette, or Kirsten Dunst as a red head. In each case, there was always something slightly distracting. Leave it be. I’d rather get the hair color totally wrong as opposed to having the character/actress always looking slightly off.
Ultimately it doesn’t change the overall argument. It’s a matter of whether or not you care if the movie representation matches what you have in your head. Some people care of such things. Some don’t. I understand both sides of the coin. And while I found the article well written and the main point to have merit. Complaining about complaining pieces get really old, real fast.
You’re welcome.
@JNewcomb: That looks pretty good…..actually she does look a lot like Lois, or should I say she looks like Margot Kidder? I know Snyder said he is going to be doing anything from the original movies or comics; but Adams does look a bit like a young Kidder.
(Feel free to make fun of me for this…) It reminds me of when pictures for Goblet of Fire came out and there was a large uproar because Hermoine’s dress was pink in the film instead of PERIWINKLE! How dare they?!
It was precisely at that time that I stopped trying to convince people to be reasonable on this front. People who expect adaptations to be an exact match are just… always going to be unhappy.
When you’re crossing from a written medium to a visual medium things can’t be translated one to one. There has to be wiggle room to, well, adapt. It’s like taking a paragraph of a foreign language and making a literal translation. It will be clunky and ridiculous because the two languages have different conventions. Instead, a good translator puts meaning over exactness and conveys tone across the cultures.
Part of the reason stuff like this sets people off is because it makes us feel like the people making the movie don’t actually give a shit about making it any good and we’d like them to at least *pretend* that they give a shit.
Besides, poor choices in fake hair color look, well…fake. The line in the original Superman was, “You will believe a man can fly,” right? Well, that’s what we want; we want to believe it. We want to be able to suspend our disbelief and buy into the movie we’re watching. A little details can really take some people out of it.
How many times has something really minor completely pulled you out of a movie or a comic? Hundreds of times and don’t even try to deny it.
That said, I’ve no idea who Amy Adams is.
@JNewcomb- Amy Adams gives your brain a boner?
Maybe I’m missing something here, but it does seem like more people are complaining about people complaining about the hair than there are actual complaints about the hair.
@diabhol it really hasn’t though, especially not hundreds. That’s a you thing (and the other people in the small inconsequential things matter camp). If that’s the way you are, then alright, but you will be soooo much happier if you learn to let go a little.
The only time these sort of things [potentially] bother me is when details of a period are gotten wrong (accidentally, not for stylistic or story reasons). That’s just poor research.
@rhan In this thread, yes. But overall comic book fans on the internet are a whiny bunch. That’s what this article is about.
Just do an image search for Lois Lane comics
Go on try it.
I really don’t care what they do with this movie but icon characters have a certain look and part of her look is raven hair- it;s a common color I find it interesting that a dye job has to be done everythime a casting choice is made.
End of story.
@ericmci I did that. So Lois Lane’s hair is blue. Cool.
@ericmci Trying not to be too disrespectful here, but you’re missing the entire point of “casting” and “acting”. You don’t cast real hobbits, and you don’t cast real superheroes, and you don’t even cast real nice people in the role of nice people. You cast actors. They have skills in doing things that are much more important (yes, important) to portraying a fictional world. Flying in front of a green screen is always a much bigger challenge than a dye job. The fact is, you don’t even know what color most actresses hair actually is in the first place. It’s all fake. It’s all a facade, covered in sparkly makeup and $500 pairs of jeans. To agree with my man Jimski, being upset about haircolor is among the most monumental waste of breath and energy I can imagine. Worry about the script, the director, and the effects if you’re going to worry about something, and thank your lucky stars that Nic Cage has nothing to do with it, regardless of his hair color.
And that is a rant.
As Josh alluded to, I’d like to point out that there are a fair number of actresses… don’t have their original hair color anyway. And some of them it’s been so long you probably have no idea it’s *not* natural. Scarlett Johansen comes to mind. Bottle Blonde. I hate to do this to the men out there but… Christina Hendricks, the knowckout redhead from Madmen? Blonde naturally.
In fact, MOST actresses dye their hair to some degree even if it’s just a slight change to add depth, continuity or brightness. If they can do it in real life, why not in fake life when we’ve already suspended our disbelief? That’s the world. That’s THEIR JOB. They change their personalities and the looks go with it.
@itsbecca — don’t forget how every single country singer just happens to be a blonde. Its just a coincidence… =p
@JNewcomb Referring to Scarlett being so hot in the black leather that nobody bothered to complain about the hair color.
Amy Adams is very beautiful. Even better, from Junebug to Enchanted to Doubt, she’s a talented actress (I choose to ignore Cruel Intentions 2 and that episode of Smallville).