Fifty Shades Casting Uproar
Ever since the names of the actors who will play the lead roles in the film version of bestselling novel, Fifty Shades of Grey, were announced, the webz have gone berserk with opinions and comments. For months I’ve been posting about how I would have liked to see Matt Bomer play Christian. Evidently, more than a few people agree with me.
Outraged “Fifty Shades of Grey” fans have taken fantasy casting to the next level.
More than 22,000 people would rather see “White Collar” star Matt Bomer and “Gilmore Girls” favorite Alexis Bledel play Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele when the movie gets down and dirty on screen next August – instead of the recently chosen Charlie Hunnam and Dakota Johnson.
A Change.org petition created by an anonymous fanatic swelled to thousands of cosigners in a matter of hours, with demands that the production team bringing the steamy novel to life rethink their casting decisions.
This is how the people from the film have responded to the outrage.
Producer Brunetti further explained the process in which they made their final casting decision. “There is a lot that goes into casting that isn’t just looks. Talent, availability, their desire to do it, chemistry with other actor, etc,” he tweeted Monday. “So if your favorite wasn’t cast, then it is most likely due to something on that list. Keep that in mind while hating and keep perspective.” He later added, “Thx to all the fans of @E_L_James FSOG for their overwhelming support of the casting choices. @MichaelDe_Luca &I can’t wait to start filming.”
With all that said, taking the comments of the producer into consideration, I’m sure a lot of thought went into this casting decision. But this is a tough one for me because I had other reasons why I wanted to see Matt Bomer play the lead. It would have been more interesting to see Matt Bomer play a role like this because he’s gay, and because straight actors have been playing gay roles since the beginning of time.
No one thought twice about two straight actors playing the lead roles in Brokeback Mountain (except gay men). And I do wonder about whether or not Bomer’s being gay had anything to do with him being passed over for the part. If nothing else, it would have shown the world that a gay actor can play a straight role just as well as a straight actor can play a gay role. And, Matt Bomer could have had fun during the promos just like Matt Damon did when he joked around about kissing a man in Behind the Candelabra. Matt Bomer could have joked around the same way about kissing a woman…in that funny-hahah slap your knee and wink way Matt Damon did it so we would all know he’s a good sport because he kissed a man. I posted about that here.
It’s interesting. So they couldn’t find one single gay actor to play the part of Liberace’s lover? I know. I’m supposed to be open about that and all actors should play be able to play any role regardless of their sexual orientation. It’s just that I don’t see anyone breaking any doors down to offer Jeffery Self…or other openly gay actors…any lead roles in feature films. That idiot Brett Easton Ellis didn’t think Matt Bomer could play Christian in 50 Shades.
As a side note, I also saw a prediction yesterday on a book blog where the snarky reviewer didn’t think the film version of Fifty Shades of Grey would do well at the box office. I think she’s wrong, once again, and I think it’s going to do as well as the book. It might not break box office records, but I do think as many people who were curious about the book will be just as curious about the film. If I’m wrong, I’ll gladly admit it. If I’m not, I’ll be very obnoxious about it.
Anthony Weiner Shouting Match
I think everyone knows by now that Anthony Weiner is running for Mayor of New York, and that Anthony Weiner has sex scandal issues (for lack of a better way to phrase that). I’ve posted about it before, and I don’t think I need to do that again here.
But what I find most interesting is that in spite of his critics, and in spite of the sex scandal, Weiner continues to move forward in the race for mayor, and he’s not doing it quietly. He’s not hiding; he’s not taking any shit from anyone, which in a way, even if you don’t like what he did with the sex scandal, is both interesting and refreshing. I write erotica, and I can honestly say that I have never in my life sexted anyone. But a lot of people do that nowadays. And I say it’s refreshing to see that Weiner isn’t backing down, because all my life all I’ve ever seen are American politicians, on all sides, lie, cheat, bullshit us, and fake it all the way.
If you think that Anthony Weiner is the only politician out there with a sex scandal, think again. The others just didn’t get caught. In fact, I don’t think there is anyone more ruthless than a politician, male of female, gay or straight. At least Weiner is open and honest about it. And his lack of discretion has created a firestorm everywhere because we aren’t used to seeing that kind of blunt honesty. In fact, from the responses I’ve seen on comment threads we want our politicians to lie to us and tell us what we want to hear instead of what we should hear.
In any event, this is what recently took place with Weiner. It was a heated exchange between Weiner and a voter. There’s also a video of this at the link.
“You wait until I walk out to say anything? That’s courage. That’s courage,” Weiner says at the start of the video, yelling into the business he’s seen leaving.
After he’s approached by the man from inside the business, Weiner gets defensive.
“What rabbi taught you you’re my judge?” Weiner repeatedly says to the man, who is Jewish.
“You’re fine,” the man says. “You talk to God and work out your problems, but stay out of the public eye.”
“Go visit with your rabbi,” Weiner says during the exchange that follows.
“Your ignorance is being shown to the entire world,” Weiner continues.
I have a tendency to always fight for the underdog, which is part of the reason why I can’t help admiring the way Weiner keeps bouncing back. Just once I’d like to see a few other politicians who weren’t involved in sex scandals do the same thing. Just once show us a little bit of honesty instead of the canned responses, the fake smiles, and the tired jargon they get from sleazy PR people.