Aaron Sorkin is Heartbroken To See Actors 'Resegregating Themselves' After Continued Criticism Over Casting Javier Bardem in 'Being The Ricardos'
In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, director Aaron Sorkin spoke out about a trend he's been noticing that he's come to find disturbing.
The director just celebrated the release of his latest film, Being The Ricardos, a biopic about I Love Lucy creators Lucille Ball and Dezi Arnaz (better known as Ricky Ricardo). Despite the praise the film has gotten, critics remain divided about how they feel about it, and much of the consternation has to do with the casting.
Sorkin had already addressed criticisms about the casting of Nicole Kidman in the role of Lucille Ball, as many fans felt she didn't look the part as much as others, such as Will and Grace actress Debra Messing, may have.
Now, however, he is apparently also catching criticism for casting Javier Bardem, a Spaniard, in a role meant for a Cuban man, and he wants to call attention to the irony he sees there.
"It's heartbreaking, and a little chilling to see members of the artistic community resegregating ourselves. You can act being attracted to someone, but can't act gay or straight. So this notion that only gay actors should play gay characters? That only a Cuban actor should play Desi? Honestly, I think it's the mother of all empty gestures and a bad idea."
Sorkin's comment raises some interesting questions about casting and exactly how "pure" one has to be with it when it comes to matters of country of origin or sexual orientation. How essential is personal experience to acting a role - and where does that essentiality end? How does one balance the concept of casting someone whose life experiences will allow them to sympathize with their character personally, with that of simply the best actor for the part?
Bardem has also had to deal with these criticisms, and seems to be equally frustrated by them, as he told The Hollywood Reporter earlier this month:
"I do recognize that there are many underrepresented voices and stories that need to be told, and we should collectively do better to provide access and opportunities for more American Latino stories and storytellers," Bardem said.
However, he also added:
"I'm an actor, and that's what I do for a living: try to be people that I'm not. "What do we do with Marlon Brando playing Vito Corleone? What do we do with Margaret Thatcher played by Meryl Streep? Daniel Day-Lewis playing Lincoln?
"Why does this conversation happen with people with accents?... Where is that conversation with English-speaking people doing things like The Last Duel, where they were supposed to be French people in the Middle Ages?
"What I mean is, if we want to open the can of worms, let's open it for everyone. The role came to me, and one thing that I know for sure is that I'm going to give everything that I have."
The actor does have a point - after all, as he points out, many people not born in Denmark have played the role of Hamlet. There has to be some middle ground between casting on look, casting on culture and casting on chops. We'll just have to keep discussing until we find it.
