Ah yes, the timeless Chinese classic, where a buff white dude (actually half-Thai, but whatever) accompanies a teenaged white monk on her epic journey to the “west” with 2 other companions, a larger white dude and a white-haired girl-sand-monk.
Titled The Legend of the Monkey, this upcoming Netflix adaptation/reboot of a 1980s Japanese adaptation (Monkey Magic) of an ancient Chinese fable sounds like a good idea on paper (even “good idea” is quite a stretch, actually).
Until you get to the part where they tell you who’s playing each character.
唐三藏/唐僧, the monk on the journey to retrieve Buddhist texts to bring them back to China, has turned from the original middle-aged Chinese dude into a teenaged bald white girl.
孙悟空, the famous Monkey King, a demi-god assigned by Buddha to protect the monk, is the only one of the main cast who’s even remotely Asian, being half-Thai.
沙僧, a warrior monk with a sick spade-like weapon, originally portrayed as balding with a thick beard, is now a white woman with white hair. How does this even work?
猪八戒, the iconic half-pig fallen demi-god who is known for his rake-like weapon and his lecherous ways, is now another white dude. Who’s just a bit plump.
Their names are now Tripitaka, Monkey, Sandy and Pigsy, after the Japanese adaptation.
The show was just teased, and it’s already garnering a lot of outrage from audiences of all kinds. Everyone is yelling about whitewashing, and Chinese fans are complaining as well.
As a New Zealand-Australian co-production, this seemed like a great opportunity for exposure for many Australian Chinese actors/actresses. Unfortunately, the producers went for a white woman, a half-Thai, and 2 actors with Maori background.
While this fact might temper the whitewashing accusations, it doesn’t detract from the fact that none of them are actually Chinese, for a decidedly Chinese epic treasured by most Chinese around the world.
Since you’re here, why not check out Goody Feed’s YouTube videos as well? They’re so Singaporean, I bet you’ll like them!
Featured Image: mashable.com
This article was first published on goodyfeed.com
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