What makes Superman, Superman?

[immortalfrieza]

The reason people don't want a black Superman is the same reason you (I'm assuming) wouldn't want them to make Wonder Woman a man, or Lex Luthor into just some crazy piss poor homeless person, because it's central to their characters to be what they are. It might be racist, but the fact is Superman is white and will remain so because that's what he's always been, and it would require some pretty significant changes to his character if his race was changed, otherwise there would be no point in changing his race to begin with. Besides, Hollywood has never been good at casting minorities or women (or both) in a role without turning that role into a walking stereotype.

 

[Relish in Chaos]

Superman must remain white because that's how he was in the comic books and when you're doing a film adaptation of a comic book, one of the most important things is to try and stay relatively faithful to the source material so you don't piss off the fans too much. It's the same reason you wouldn't turn Spiderman's suit purple.

 

[Galletea]

The only reason I can see for not making him black is simply because you'd have to write his whole extended family and upbringing over again, taking in civil rights history into account and possibly changing timelines, or locations. Other than that, it would just be tokenism at this stage. There is nothing to gain through altering a massively established character like superman, unless you're going for an alternate universe spin on things. Changing the dynamic of a less massive hero group, like the fantastic four(who are a bit rubbish anyway, and are not as tied to a backstory as bigger solo stars) adds a new element to the relationships between the characters, making it more human.

Mixing race up in a group scenario works because it adds a new element, changing a big solo character from white to black is too much like doing it for the sake of it, and you could write up something new, or just make something about one of the black heroes.

 

[lechat]

if superman was black he'd be able to leap 1 and a half tall buildings and that just isn't realistic

 

[Xukog]

I don't really have anything against the idea.I do have a hard time picturing it,however. It's just....I think of Superman,and I have the version from Justice League/Justice League Unlimited show stuck in my head.