Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand star in Joel Coen’s bold and fierce adaptation; a tale of murder, madness, ambition, and wrathful cunning.
Something Wicked This Way Comes
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Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand star in Joel Coen’s bold and fierce adaptation; a tale of murder, madness, ambition, and wrathful cunning.
Lisa Marie Blair 
There are only three black characters in Shakespeare: Aaron in Titus Andronicus, The Prince of Morocco in The Merchant of Venice , and Othello, the main character in Othello. Macbeth had none. That makes this a “woke” movie, and by extension, racist. No thanks
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It’s shocking that in a trailer to a film so beautifully shot, with amazing actors and an obviously compelling plot you gleaned racism. That certainly wasn’t my thought or motivation for sharing the trailer. I don’t believe that just because Shakespeare only wrote three black characters doesn’t mean that black actors cannot play his other roles as well. These are fictional stories we are talking about, right? So, how is a back man playing the role inherently racist? What is a “woke” movie and why is it bad?
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So if they cast a white man to play MLK Jr, or Malcolm X, and cast a white woman to play Rosa Parks, the black community would just so “Oh, but it is a great script with great actors”? No. They would burn down a corner CVS. THAT is where the racism comes in. The “woke” movement is intended to cancel white culture. Guess the UK did not get the memo.
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Well, I think that most films made about MLK Jr. or Malcolm X are centered around their fight for black liberation/civil rights. To cast their characters with someone of a different race wouldn’t make sense for the story.
Also, they are not fictional characters. These are real people and to cast them in a different race would be a form of erasure.
Though the characters in The Tragedy of Macbeth are based very, very loosely on real characters, the story is a fictional tale and I cannot recall that his race had much bearing if at all. If a film were written about, say, Hitler and a Black character were cast, that too would make very little sense.
Additionally, there have already been quite a few films, particularly films based on stories originally written for Asian characters, where roles have been recast with White actors to little outcry.
Of course, each of us is entitled to our own opinion and you certainly have the right to support whatever actors, filmmakers, studios and distributors you choose, but I think the accusation that this film is inherently racist is a bit far-fetched.
Lastly, I have never seen any activist fighting for black liberation/civil rights who has proclaimed that their goal or intention is to cancel white culture. As someone who supports such movements I can tell you that if they have, they do not represent me and I have little doubt that was the intention of this film’s creators.
For centuries we have been telling this story with White actors only and one film will not, could not, undo that.
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