I Still Love Adaptations, Even When They Get It Wrong
Live-action adaptations of original media have become more prevalent in recent years. While there is often discourse about which recreations are the best, and even if they are needed, they are often welcomed by me. I am someone who was either too young when the original pieces were made, or the adaptations gave a new life to media I had discovered a long time ago. The 2023 adaptation of The Little Mermaid is a prime example of this, a film whose recreation gave a new touch to a classic that was integral to my childhood.
When I was in elementary school, I won a school-wide spelling bee. The reward for the first-place winner was a $250 Scholastic gift card, which I happily spent, adding to my book collection. At the time, I vividly remember reading The Hunger Games books, anticipating each of their releases.
Photo by Elin Melaas on Unsplash
The release of The Hunger Games film in 2012 revolutionized the film industry, catapulting other young-adult dystopian books into the limelight. Since The Hunger Games did so well, studios were willing to put their faith behind book-to-movie adaptations like 2014’s The Maze Runner and Divergent. The Hunger Games wasn’t without controversy, though, discourse circling the casting of Rue, a character who is closely linked with the protagonist Katniss Everdeen, as they try to survive the ill-fated Hunger Games.
At the start, people were upset at Rue being cast as a Black actress, Amandla Stenberg, despite the book blatantly describing her to have brown skin. This raised issues about the racism of film audiences, considering the film’s explicit mention of her skin tone. For me, the more troubling thing was seeing people ignore the adjective that prefaced Rue’s brown skin description, that she had “dark brown skin.” In each Hunger Games, a boy and a girl from each district must be picked to enter the arena. Both Rue and Thresh, played by Nigerian actor Dayo Okeniyi, were described as dark-skinned people. Thresh’s complexion was kept consistent, while Rue’s wasn’t.
Amandla Stenberg as Rue in The Hunger Games (2012), directed by Gary Ross. Lionsgate Films.
Thresh’s actions inherently defy the stereotypes of colorism in Hollywood; he spares Katniss when they interact. However, Rue’s casting continued to perpetuate harmful rhetoric about the desirability of women and girls of color on-screen. Rue’s death in the books and in the film is often credited with propelling Katniss into her rebellious mindset; she recognizes the severity of the Capitol’s actions, that they send children to fight to the death. The connotations surrounding the event were never lost on us, but the death of someone as young as Rue forces the characters and viewers alike to tackle how desensitized we are to violence. Rue is a martyr, becoming a symbol of rebellion and, inherently, hopes to overthrow the tyrannical ways of the Capitol’s hierarchical power. Putting a fairer-skinned actor in this role, however, only makes the colorism more apparent.
Colorism often shows that to be light-skinned is to be more desirable. While Amandla may have been best for the job, her casting inherently meant that the people in The Hunger Games idolized what could’ve been a darker skinned actor. Rue propelling the entire revolution should have been a moment to spotlight a dark-skinned Black girl in a role that symbolized innocence, strength, and ultimately, resistance. Instead, the choice to cast a lighter-skinned actress reveals how deeply rooted colorism is in Hollywood. It sends a message about which appearances are more “palatable” to mass audiences, especially when tied to notions of purity or martyrdom. While Amandla Stenberg delivered a powerful and emotional performance, the decision still serves as a missed opportunity to challenge the visual norms that dominate our screens. As live-action adaptations continue to retell beloved stories, it’s vital they do so with integrity to the source material. I’d love to hear how others have felt about recent adaptations. Have they stayed true to the characters you grew up with, or left something essential behind?
