Colombian Actor Very Mad That People of Color Weren’t Hired to Play Mario and Luigi
Apparently Italians are people of color now.
The Mario brothers are making their return to the silver screen in 2023 with "The Super Mario Bros Movie."
The animated film has already attracted a decent amount of controversy due to Chris Pratt's woeful Italian accent.
READ: CHRIS PRATT IS GETTING SLAMMED FOR HIS SUPER MARIO BROS. ACCENT
But that's not why actor John Leguizamo is upset.
Leguizamo, who is Colombian, previously played Luigi in a 1993 version of the Mario story. In a series of now-deleted tweets, he expressed disappointment in the updated casting choices.
One of his tweet read, "But too bad they went all white! No Latinx in the leads! Groundbreaking color-blind casting in original! Plus I'm the only one who knows how to make this movie work script-wise!"
This picture taken on April 26, 2014 shows Japanese videogame giant Nintendo's characters Super Mario and Luigi (L) performing in Chiba, suburban Tokyo. Nintendo booked a 229 million USD annual loss on May 7, reversing a year-earlier profit as dismal sales of its Wii U console during the crucial Christmas holiday period dented results. (AFP PHOTO / Yoshikazu TSUNO via Getty Images)
Color is Apparently Key in Casting
There's so much wrong with Leguizamo's remarks, it's hard to know where to start.
Hollywood over the past few years has decided that actors' backgrounds must match those of the characters they play.
To avoid criticism by the woke left and activist critics, ethnically-matched casting has become a necessity.
But when convenient, according to Leguizamo, it's more important to do "color-blind" casting.
That hypocrisy is bad enough, but it's even more absurd considering this is an animated movie. If a person of color was cast as Mario or Luigi, there would be no visual change.
Not to mention that Latinx is, of course, an entirely made up word.
Mario and Luigi are Italian plumbers.
If Leguizamo was intellectually consistent, he'd be upset that an Italian actor wasn't cast. It wouldn't have anything to do with being "color-blind."
But it's not about intellectual consistency, it's about victimhood superiority. Leguizamo excels at being the victim in all circumstances, even ones that have nothing to do with him.
Just imagine his outrage if an American actor was cast to play a Colombian part in 2022.
Selective outrage is what the left does best, however. Hypocritical campaigns designed to accumulate victim points are more important than a logically coherent point.
He also exemplifies why Hollywood's struggles continue to deepen. Focusing on race, politics and pleasing the woke means movies are getting worse and worse.
This is an animated film about a children's video game. It's entertainment, not a political statement.
If anything, it should unite people of all cultures, races and ethnicities in agreement that Pratt isn't even trying to do an Italian accent.