Racists boycott Thor movie because of Idris Elba playing a god

[cainx10a]

So, I can sue random people for always having High Elves as white people?

 

[catalyst8]

"Did you know that the totally made-up-by-medieval-drunks gods of Norse mythology were all white?

[...]

For his part, Idris Elba has playfully acknowledged the obvious incongruity between his complexion and what is conventionally thought to be the true appearance of a made-up mythological god who never existed.

I'm glad Elba's been given what I assume is a well paying role, I've enjoyed his work since I first saw him in Ultraviolet.

I feel obliged to point out the presumably unintentional racism in the original post, though judging by the initial quotation mark only the very final sentence is the poster's:

When they say 'made-up-by-medieval-drunks' they are making an historically inaccurate racial slur. In late Iron Age Anglo-Saxon & Scandinavian culture the concept of a drunk, let alone a number of them, is unthinkable due to cultural & environmental restrictions. This particular aspersion is common to the frequently bland, low-brow, childishly unimaginative money machine of Hollywoodland, where racist stereotypes & derivative scripts can be guaranteed to pacify the average, under-educated, unquestioning bovine-minded pleb.

As an example of Hollywoodland racism in action (& as I've mentioned it's also racism I noticed in the original post), just take a look at the differences between the poem Beowulf & the film they made of it. The poem represents the English & Scandinavian ideal: Brave, honourable, generous, self-sacrificing & above all honest & loyal, with true pride instead of false modesty & hubris. When one watches the film there is an obviously deliberate assertion of dishonourable, lying, cheating, thieving, selfish, gluttonous, cowardly bullies. That's racism, pure & simple.

The post repeatedly references 'made-up mythological god who never existed'. Is the author suggesting that there are any other kinds of gods than the purely imagined ones? However something doesn't have to have a corporeal realism to take on a cultural symbolism of huge importance. I know a few Hindus who don't believe the accounts in the Bhagavad Gita to be historic truths, but it's a great piece of literature, & I can understand why they'd be utterly incensed if someone hijacked it & used it to accuse their culture of being based on cannibalism & bestiality. I can imagine how it would infuriate modern Greeks if someone abused The Iliad to accuse them of being cowards & pederasts.

And I think it's revolting, truly sickening, that people find it acceptable to perpetrate racism against the English & our Scandinavian cousins.

 

[RobCoxxy]

Shit, 150 racists aren't going to watch it.
The movie's bound to fail.

Racist logic fail.

 

[electric discordian]

"Did you know that the totally made-up-by-medieval-drunks gods of Norse mythology were all white?

[...]

For his part, Idris Elba has playfully acknowledged the obvious incongruity between his complexion and what is conventionally thought to be the true appearance of a made-up mythological god who never existed.

I'm glad Elba's been given what I assume is a well paying role, I've enjoyed his work since I first saw him in Ultraviolet.

I feel obliged to point out the presumably unintentional racism in the original post, though judging by the initial quotation mark only the very final sentence is the poster's:

When they say 'made-up-by-medieval-drunks' they are making an historically inaccurate racial slur. In late Iron Age Anglo-Saxon & Scandinavian culture the concept of a drunk, let alone a number of them, is unthinkable due to cultural & environmental restrictions. This particular aspersion is common to the frequently bland, low-brow, childishly unimaginative money machine of Hollywoodland, where racist stereotypes & derivative scripts can be guaranteed to pacify the average, under-educated, unquestioning bovine-minded pleb.

As an example of Hollywoodland racism in action (& as I've mentioned it's also racism I noticed in the original post), just take a look at the differences between the poem Beowulf & the film they made of it. The poem represents the English & Scandinavian ideal: Brave, honourable, generous, self-sacrificing & above all honest & loyal, with true pride instead of false modesty & hubris. When one watches the film there is an obviously deliberate assertion of dishonourable, lying, cheating, thieving, selfish, gluttonous, cowardly bullies. That's racism, pure & simple.

The post repeatedly references 'made-up mythological god who never existed'. Is the author suggesting that there are any other kinds of gods than the purely imagined ones? However something doesn't have to have a corporeal realism to take on a cultural symbolism of huge importance. I know a few Hindus who don't believe the accounts in the Bhagavad Gita to be historic truths, but it's a great piece of literature, & I can understand why they'd be utterly incensed if someone hijacked it & used it to accuse their culture of being based on cannibalism & bestiality. I can imagine how it would infuriate modern Greeks if someone abused The Iliad to accuse them of being cowards & pederasts.

And I think it's revolting, truly sickening, that people find it acceptable to perpetrate racism against the English & our Scandinavian cousins.

You sir have said pretty much all I was going to say. Idris Elba is a great actor but totally wrong for this role. Again we go back to the notion of casting Woodie Allen as Shaft in the re imagining coming in 2021 if he is still alive then. Or a biopic of Ghandi staring Jason Statham.

You have basically pissed off alot of pagan's this may well be our "Passion of the Christ!" oh and alot of those pagans are Neo Nazis, but they are tools who have hijacked Odinism for their own ends. Not that we will March or complain we will just drink mead worship quietly and go about our business.

I will be watching the film as I still have a sense of humour, if I can laugh at all gods then I am sure Loki will smile on me!

 

[Antari]

Stupid ... absolutely stupid, and unnessisary. Can't come up with your own story? Steal another and change whatever you like. Classical Hollywood thinking. And its downright stupid.

 

[Numb1lp]

I'd just like to point out that not all white people are messed up like this.

 

[manaman]

...that the American people and government should remain European in their composition and character," and thus "oppose all efforts to mix the races of mankind... to destroy or denigrate the European-American heritage...

Well shit. I guess being born in America isn't good enough. Curse my brown skin because of my Mexican heritage. Or do I get a pass since I am also part Native American, and I can say "Fuck you," as my ancestors where hear first.

Wait wait, if I am reading that right it means they hate me even more since I am just one big mix of Irish, Mexican, Native American, German, French, and Welsh.

 

[Denamic]

Whatever the case, this is hardly 'canon' Norse mythology.
And even if it were, it'd still be made up shit.
So why do people even care about this in the first place?

 

[suitepee7]

Aem...
While I've never read these comics, it still goes to reason that the gods of the Norse mythology, basically part of my heritage since I'm Scandinavian, are white. Why? Because we are. We're all pale-ass motherfuckers 'cause we live in the far north. It's kinda like portraying Ra of Egyptian mythology as asian. There's nothing racist in it, and it's a pity that racists have taken this cause, but it's a pretty valid point that norse gods are, well, norse.

All this "no mixed races" bullshit can fuck right off, though.

pretty much this. i mean i'm not racist, but they should also be keeping to the comic of thor, in which thor is white. its just not being true to the comic. its not racist, its just continuity.

however they are boycotting it for racist reasons, and that in its own respect if wrong.

 

[Just_in_time]

they obviously must have a had a problem with Morgan freeman playing god in two movies.

 

[concrete89]

What that group fails to acknowledge is that the Thor created by marvel is nothing like the Thor of mythology.
Blond?
Beardless?
Helmet?
Not a rampant drunk
No foul temper or hunting trolls and giants for sport?
The guy doesn't even like fishing!
I'm getting so pissed right now...

 

[Mr.Squishy]

"Did you know that the totally made-up-by-medieval-drunks gods of Norse mythology were all white?

[...]

For his part, Idris Elba has playfully acknowledged the obvious incongruity between his complexion and what is conventionally thought to be the true appearance of a made-up mythological god who never existed.

I'm glad Elba's been given what I assume is a well paying role, I've enjoyed his work since I first saw him in Ultraviolet.

I feel obliged to point out the presumably unintentional racism in the original post, though judging by the initial quotation mark only the very final sentence is the poster's:

When they say 'made-up-by-medieval-drunks' they are making an historically inaccurate racial slur. In late Iron Age Anglo-Saxon & Scandinavian culture the concept of a drunk, let alone a number of them, is unthinkable due to cultural & environmental restrictions. This particular aspersion is common to the frequently bland, low-brow, childishly unimaginative money machine of Hollywoodland, where racist stereotypes & derivative scripts can be guaranteed to pacify the average, under-educated, unquestioning bovine-minded pleb.

As an example of Hollywoodland racism in action (& as I've mentioned it's also racism I noticed in the original post), just take a look at the differences between the poem Beowulf & the film they made of it. The poem represents the English & Scandinavian ideal: Brave, honourable, generous, self-sacrificing & above all honest & loyal, with true pride instead of false modesty & hubris. When one watches the film there is an obviously deliberate assertion of dishonourable, lying, cheating, thieving, selfish, gluttonous, cowardly bullies. That's racism, pure & simple.

The post repeatedly references 'made-up mythological god who never existed'. Is the author suggesting that there are any other kinds of gods than the purely imagined ones? However something doesn't have to have a corporeal realism to take on a cultural symbolism of huge importance. I know a few Hindus who don't believe the accounts in the Bhagavad Gita to be historic truths, but it's a great piece of literature, & I can understand why they'd be utterly incensed if someone hijacked it & used it to accuse their culture of being based on cannibalism & bestiality. I can imagine how it would infuriate modern Greeks if someone abused The Iliad to accuse them of being cowards & pederasts.

And I think it's revolting, truly sickening, that people find it acceptable to perpetrate racism against the English & our Scandinavian cousins.

I agree with this.
Let me clarify. I am a scandinavian, and have grown up with norse mythology as my cultural heritage and one of my dearest interests before I discovered the PC. And I try to keep an open mind about stuff like this, I really do, I even supported the whole 'black spiderman' thing a while back. And now people are gonna fuck with what I've grown up with, what's been ingrained in the collective scandinavian culture, and call those who wish to retain it in its original form racists?! These are the same people who complained that the Prince of Persia movie and Avatar: TLA were white-washed! And imagine the uproar if a movie was made about native american or asian or african mythology and portrayed their gods as caucasians. There would be a massive uproar. Death threats, even. And they would have had the majority at their back. But now that the culture being fucked with is white people's, they're racists for standing up for their cultural heritage and beliefs. Norse mythology is just as much a religion as the abrahamic religions or buddhism.


Also, have you any idea how offensive it is to someone to have their ancestors portrayed as nothing but 'drunken barbarians'(that's the hollywood stereotype, the one I get the impression you're going from)? That is, as mentioned in the quoted post, a stereotype against vikings. They were just as much farmers and traders(quite skilled ones) as murdering and pillaging drunkards in horned helmets(which are a myth, by the way, no viking helmet ever discovered had horns), and they lived in a society where women and men were treated with equal respect, although different duties. A woman was the keeper of the farm, and an equal to her husband.

Last, but not least, I wish to quote a few posts that I also agree with.

Has been said already, but I put too much work not to post again.

Did you know that the totally made-up-by-medieval-drunks gods of Norse mythology


"There has been a big debate about it: can a black man play a Nordic character?" he told TV Times. "Hang about, Thor's mythical, right? Thor has a hammer that flies to him when he clicks his fingers. That's OK, but the colour of my skin is wrong?

Yes, insulting a religion is the right way to go. LOL, hang about, Jesus is mythical, right? Jesus can turn water to wine, and ressurrect the dead. That's OK, but him being portrayed as *white/black/mexican/arab/everything everyone changes it* is wrong?

Hang about, Shiva is mythical, right? Shiva can destroy worlds. That's OK, but the Shiva being portrayed by a Native American is wrong?

How about for this site specifically, I'm white I was cast as Goku, I'm white I was cast as characters in Avatar, see where I'm going with this? Those guys are wrong on everything else, but Norse Gods are white, period. African Gods are African, SHOCKING!

Therefore I don't a norseman would find it unreasonable that there might be black asgardians, because he would believe his gods were not just his peoples but everyones.

[HEADING=1]Heimdall, called "The White God". Whitest of the aesir(all Norse Gods), as white as the sun.[/HEADING]

Heimdall isn't just white, he's blonde hair blue eyes white. He's so white that when he goes skiing you can't see him in the snow. He's so white he gets sunburn from a 40 watt light bulb.
I guess here goes the famous portraits of Heimdall:

Spoiler: Heimdall's birth.

Spoiler: Heimdall with valkyries escorting a fallen warrior

I'll still watch it, I'll still enjoy it, I'll watch the second one. And Idris Elba will probably do an amazing job, but the point stands.

And

i pretty much agree with electric discordian.

i don't think it's racist in the slightest to expect people to reflect the source material when it comes to casting.

these are Norse gods. from Scandinavia.
from the dawn of their creation they've been imagined to reflect their creators (like most gods)

it's as bad as the incomming black hobbits or my moms idea the next Dr Who should be a woman and smacks of so called "political correctness".

now if you are making the whole thing up from scratch cast whoever you want but i want to see a black guy playing Othello and a white guy playing Hamlet tyvm not because i'm racist but because that's what they are supposed to be.

Also

Again we go back to the notion of casting Woodie Allen as Shaft in the re imagining coming in 2021 if he is still alive then. Or a biopic of Ghandi staring Jason Statham.

I will be watching the film as I still have a sense of humour, if I can laugh at all gods then I am sure Loki will smile on me!

 

[TheDarkestDerp]

I had to re-read this thing a few times just to try and figure out who was hating who and for what... *rattles her head* got a lil' confusing there.

Why be upset about a mythology built on another people's religion? I've never heard of too many people being upset about the severe lack of any white folks in ancient Egypt's pantheon... or non-anthropomorhpics for that matter...

Every character in the Norse mythos was ...oh my gods, surprise of surprise... Nordic, of all things, and the norsemen were all white. Big hairy white guys. Big hairy deal. No black people, hispanic people, Asian, Puerto Rican, Polynesian, Transgender, Bungee-jumpers, Fraggles or Smurfs, oddly enough.

Their religion, their mythos. Marvel's movie. Boo-frickity-hoo.

 

[UltraParanoia]

I hate Marvel. They pretty much took the entirety of Norse mythology and changed one tiny bit of it(aliens instead of gods) to get away with bastardizing the fuck out of it.
Another example:

Thor, through your arrogance and stupidity, you have opened these peaceful realms and innocent lives to the horror...and devastation...of war

Totally something the Father of the slain and victory would say, right?

The only true way to make a movie about Norse gods(faggy comic book version or not) is to go to Iceland, find the biggest motherfuckers there and start rolling as they wreck shit. That's it.

Casting a black guy as a Norse god who was called the whitest of the gods stinks of intentional douchebag irony to me.

Was the Sutr role cast already or is he not in this shithole movie?

 

[Grubnar]

Norse gods were white because the people who worshipped them were white. Period.
So ofcourse someone is bugged about it. Even I find it fricking stupid. But do I care that much about it? Nah. A shit movie where a black dude plays Thor? Sounds like something I wouldnt even rent.

This is, in fact, not true.

Not only were the "vikings" an equal opertunity organisation (if they can be called that) who judged people more by their actual ABILITY rather than the color of teir skin.
But also, so were the Gods they worshiped. Heimdallur is a case in point. Although his father, Odinn, was white skinned, his mothers (yes, he had nine!) are shrouded in mystery and the color of THEIR skin ... well, your guess is as good as mine.

Interestingly, the only God we know to be "white" is Baldur, because he is described in detail. Actually, in Norse mythology, if I remember correctly, Thor is much more "ruggedly handsome" (Nathan Fillon as Rick Castle anyone?) and had red hair. So when they started te Thor comics, the guys at Marvel gave him the look of Baldur.

Strange, eh?

Personally, I would have given Idris Elba the role of Tyr, the god of war, but only because he is my favorite, so Im biased.

 

[UltraParanoia]

Fraggles

There were Fraggles, they were eaten by Frost Giants. It's why everyone hated them.

 

[Verlander]

I wonder why all of these groups seem to be American....

Seriously though, I'm not surprised, and don't really care. The world will never be free of hate, just be content with the fact it constantly eats at their lives, and not yours

 

[Byere]

Don't get me wrong when I say this. I'm not racist, I have nothing against anyone because of the colour of their skin or such, but I must say I slightly agree (in principle) with what they're saying. Nowhere in Norse Mythology does it state that any god is black. Then again, nowhere does it say there ISN'T a black god.

The problem with groups like the CCC is that even if it was the other way round and they portrayed only white folk as the gods in Thor, there'd people people up in arms over "how racist the makers were, only casting white people!".
No matter what happens, you cannot win or please everyone.