Yesterday, some major news was released about the upcoming movie Spider-Man: Homecoming. The Wrap reported that Zendaya will play Spider-Man’s love interest, Mary Jane Watson. Back in March, Marvel announced that Zendaya had joined the film, but didn’t give details about her role.
Considering this adaptation focuses on high school versions of Spider-Man and his cohorts, we’re pretty stoked by this casting. At 19, Zendaya is the perfect age for the character, and we love her charisma, acting talent, and the way she speaks out about important issues such as racism, cultural appropriation, body image, and photoshop.
But some people weren’t so thrilled about Zendaya’s casting. See, Zendaya is black, and some racist Marvel fans are insisting that the actress who plays Mary Jane has to be white…because the character has red hair. Nevermind the fact that Mary Jane’s personality is a lot more than her hair color, hair dye exists, and that previous actresses playing Mary Jane, like Kirsten Dunst, have not all been natural redheads. Also, no one is saying that Tom Holland can’t play Spider-Man because he’s British and Spidey is American…hmmmmm.
Luckily, Twitter had something to say to the racists:
Zendaya hasn’t yet commented on the news — probably because of her Marvel contract — but we know she’ll be amazing as Mary Jane.
Top photo: Instagram/Zendaya
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