Where Are the Black Superhero Movies?

[MJB]

Tyrese is a rapper I believe, would you except him if he got the role of Luke Cage?

Tyrese is not a rapper. He's a R&B singer and a damn good one. Don't know if any one remember the coke commercial in the late 90's where the black bald kid gets on the bus singing. Well that was him.

 

[tzarinna]

^ It's like looking in a mirror!

LMAO......

 

[MJB]

I can't totally rail on the writers. It's easy to write from your perspective. But once you step outside it, its a crapshoot. There are very few minority writers in comics, and the majority population don't know what it's like to be a minority, so they, consciously or subconsciously lean on stereotypes when writing a minority character, if for no other reason, to give the character a sense of credibility as a minority. And writing a minority character as though he's a white one raises whole new issues. It's a tricky thing to navigate.

That's the whole problem. Why do white writers feel that have to make the character be known to be black by having them act out black sterotypes? We can all look at the character and know he or she is black. All they have to do is write a character from a human standpoint. You don't need to put in racial overtones. Characters like Spawn or Storm arw wriiten as superheros first and isn't bogged down by racial sterotypes.

 

[deemar325]

LMAO......

seriously lol!

 

[deemar325]

That's the whole problem. Why do white writers feel that have to make the character be known to be black by having them act out black sterotypes? We can all look at the character and know he or she is black. All they have to do is write a character from a human standpoint. You don't need to put in racial overtones. Characters like Spawn or Storm arw wriiten as superheros first and isn't bogged down by racial sterotypes.

Ditto

 

[32CAGE]

That's a good point. It's what makes Luke Cage what he is. It would seem rather bizarre if Luke Cage came from a wealthy background. Part of his edge that makes him who he is, is the fact that he grew up poor, and persevered despite his struggles.

There is a misconception that Cage came from a poor background. Cage's father was a police officer. Cage was the rebellious youngest son of James Lucas, Sr. Luke was involved in gang activity and left it before being framed by a former friend over a girl. Luke's mother also an accidental victim of gang violence. Luke was not poor but came from a middle class family. Nevertheless, because of his gang experience he was familiar with the streets.

 

[32CAGE]

At least Marvel has some black superheroes. Don't expect any from DC.

Good point. But we should never compromise where quality is concerned. I am thankful that Marvel has black characters but i will not remain quite if i believe they are presenting characters in demeaning or sterotypical ways. We have to hold them accountable for the quality of product they give us.

 

[TheGrayGhost]

Their isn't a lot of quality black superheros. I really don't care to see Luke Cage. A criminal and thug for hire. Or at least it will be with Singleton at the helm. He is going to ghettoize this movie. Black Panther good be good but he has no real powers for us to be like wow. Probably storm and Spawn are the only quality Black heroes. Neither was done justice on the bigscreen. Spawn coul have been sweet but it didn't have a decent budget. Oh well.

Come on.

• Green Lantern (Jon Stewart)
• Steel
• Mr. Terrific
• Vixen

Just to name a few. But, yeah, there hasn't been many black superheroes on the silver screen.

 

[TheGrayGhost]

At least Marvel has some black superheroes. Don't expect any from DC.

Why not?

 

[Red Mask]

Why not?

Because Warner Bros. hasn't demonstrated any intention of doing so. They're working on Batman, Superman, etc. There's been no mention of bringing their black superheroes to live action. So until they say it's happening, don't expect it to happen.

Marvel, on the other hand, has announced a line-up they wish to develop. Luke Cage, Black Panther, Deathlok, and Cloak from "Cloak and Dagger". They want to put these heroes on the screen. And now they're seeking the talent to accomplish that. Maybe it will happen or not, but I can expect more from them now.

 

[terry78]

And any oppurtunity to make Green Lantern a John Stewart tale will get lambasted by fanboys that want Rayner or Jordan.

 

[Sentinel X]

His name's Static, not Static Shock. ANyway, that might be cool. But Icon would be better.

Actually its Static Shock,hes talking about the teenage static...who is Static Shock.And I agree,Static Shock could be like Fantastic Four or Spider-man in terms of looks, but theyre going to have to make A LOT of adjustments

 

[MangleBoP]

Its not only blacks, its non-whites in general.Look in a comic book, its rare to find an Asian hero,Indian hero,Hispanic heros, or Bi-racial heroes...Its the
21st century...youd think by now major comic book companies would show that heroes come in all colors..wrong.

Here's the big problem: All the good powers, names, origens, and costumes are taken! It's next to impossible to make a strong, original charecter, independant of ethnicity. Add to that the fact that, well... there's only so much room at the top... and it's always hard for the new guy... plus a hero is only as cool as his villians...all these factors make it extremely difficult for a minority hero to become popular in the mainstream.

 

[blksuperman2]

Actually its Static Shock,hes talking about the teenage static...who is Static Shock.And I agree,Static Shock could be like Fantastic Four or Spider-man in terms of looks, but theyre going to have to make A LOT of adjustments

No, Question is right his name is Static. The SHOW was called Static Shock. Noone ever referred to him as Static Shock, just Static.

I want to see the Last X-men movie starring BISHOP

 

[ghost113]

yes this is right his name is static, and i would totally go see that movie.

 

[32CAGE]

That's the whole problem. Why do white writers feel that have to make the character be known to be black by having them act out black sterotypes? We can all look at the character and know he or she is black. All they have to do is write a character from a human standpoint. You don't need to put in racial overtones. Characters like Spawn or Storm arw wriiten as superheros first and isn't bogged down by racial sterotypes.

I think your observations are what has made Brian Michael Bendis successful in his development of Luke Cage.

 

[Philly Phanboy]

And any oppurtunity to make Green Lantern a John Stewart tale will get lambasted by fanboys that want Rayner or Jordan.

How true.

 

[w@llcrawler]

And any oppurtunity to make Green Lantern a John Stewart tale will get lambasted by fanboys that want Rayner or Jordan.

Ideally, they should do a trilogy - think I heard that was the plan somewhere - on the Lantern Corps and have Jordan, Stewart, and Raynor. I'm not a big GL fan so I don't know if that's possible within the context of the GL history but at least that way it would satisfy fans of each of the Lantern characters.

I assume that the reason that there aren't as many black charaters in comics is because there aren't as many black creaters in comics. I don't think its fair to blame white writers for not creating more black characters. I am white and the closest thing I can relate this issue to is rap music (don't recall if someone else said this before). As a comic fan, I understand that if you're black you want to read comics that you can identify with (i.e.:black characters). As a white rap music fan, I'd want to hear more music by white rappers that I could relate to but there just aren't that many out there!

Come to think of it, a lot of white people like rap music because they can relate to the message. And i read where someone on here said "why can't they just write a superhero that who and what he is isn't affected by what color he is? In other words don't stereotype him. Well, if that's the issue, are there no characters in comics that black people can relate to despite the color of their skin? I'm not being funny, but asking a question to which I honestly don't know the answer.

Feedback...

 

[terry78]

^True enough, but when we as black people complain about this, the response we get is to quit whining and being so P.C.

 

[w@llcrawler]

^True enough, but when we as black people complain about this, the response we get is to quit whining and being so P.C.

Not me. I would love to see more Superheroes from different races and nationalities. I just wonder are there not as many black comic book fans as there are white ones? Or as many Japanese ones? I know I've heard how much the Japanese love American pop culture. I wonder why there aren't more Japanese oriented superheroes.

To address something said earlier, I think (not positive) that Luke Cage seems "stereotyped" when you look at his early issues but remember, when they came out, he was kinda based on the "blacksploitation" explosion that was taking place with movies like Shaft and Superfly. Looking back, do those seem like stereotypes now?

I'd love to see a Cage movie done right. And I think Henry Simmons would be perfect for Cage by the way after seeing those pics! And you know you can't have him dressed EXACTLY like he was from the old days but I wish there was some way to present him that as soon as you saw him you'd KNOW it was the Cage from the old days without him looking rediculous. I mean, I want that color scheme! And I've said it before and will say it again, the way to REALLY do a cool Cage movie would be to do HEROES FOR HIRE with Iron Fist. Or maybe a solo movie each and then the team film! Coolest team in comics! Black Panther also. Maybe let him debut in FF2 and then his own series. I'd go see a Static Shock movie as I always enjoyed the cartoon (early episodes anyway).

Anyway just my 2 and a half cents.

 

[Red Mask]

Not me. I would love to see more Superheroes from different races and nationalities. I just wonder are there not as many black comic book fans as there are white ones? Or as many Japanese ones? I know I've heard how much the Japanese love American pop culture. I wonder why there aren't more Japanese oriented superheroes.

Do you mean why doesn't American comic books have more Japanese superheroes. Or why doesn't Japan have more costumed superheroes?

 

[w@llcrawler]

Do you mean why doesn't American comic books have more Japanese superheroes. Or why doesn't Japan have more costumed superheroes?

I meant as crazy as I've heard the Japanese are over American pop culture
that maybe Marvel or DC should taylor some stuff more for them, i.e. Japanese characters. But having heard myself say what I meant I now see the flaw in my logic. The Japanese love AMERICAN pop culture. I guess they have plenty enough Japanese comics in their own country. Heck , MY son likes the Japanese stuff (Yugioh, DBZ,etc.) more than the American comics, although he does read some Marvel stuff.

In regards to the issue that is the topic of this thread, I don't really know the answer. I want to say that if a comic is well written and well drawn, it shouldn't matter what color the characters are. It should sell well to a broader audience than one made up solely of people of the same race as the title character.

If the problem is that there just aren't enough black comic fans out there buying titles with black charaters, maybe a diverse team book with a strong black leader would be the next best thing. I LOVE Cage in the New Avengers. He's funny, smart, and there's nothing particularly "black" about him as there is nothing particularly "white" about Spider-man. Race isn't even an issue (with the exception of the new baby, and that's not really an issue compared to the "what-kind-of-super-powers-is-this-kid-gonna-develope" issue).

Looking at Blade (the movies) I don;t think there's anything particularly race-specific about the character. I think, in the context of the film an Asian or whatever could have played the part without changing any of the meaning of the story. Not saying I would want that but just saying if they'd write Cage, not as the story of a black man, but just of a man (no stereotypes) who is framed and sent to prison, I think it'd be a lot better than wasting time worrying about whether or not the character is "black" enough. I know I'm rambling but I guess what I mean is that if you read the script and there was no mention of the character's race, and from reading the script you COULDN'T TELL what his race was, then you'd have successfully removed any stereotypes that might turn someone off to the movie. Then find a good black actor who could bring that character to life and presto, you'd be on your way to having a great movie about a black superhero!

 

[ChinoXL]

I'd really like to see a GOOD spawn movie the characters were well portrayed but the pg-13 killed it

 

[warpdrive]

I think either the black green lantern or a movie about bishop would be good, what's this i hear about Will Smith playing a super hero?

 

[w@llcrawler]

I'd really like to see a GOOD spawn movie the characters were well portrayed but the pg-13 killed it

I saw an R rated cut of Spawn on dvd the other day at Wal-mart. Never saw it though. I don't hold out much hope for a good remake after hearing McFarlane saying he's going to write, produce and direct it himself for less than $1 million (i thinkthat was the amount - anyway, something rediculously low).