My Hero Academia VA Calls Those Critical Of Disney And Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson Race Swapping Racist
John F. Trent
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My Hero Academia voice actor Anairis Quiñones took to Twitter to describe those critical of Disney and Rick Riordan’s race swapping in their upcoming Percy Jackson series on Disney+ racist.
Source: My Hero Academia Ch. 267 “Flames” (2020), Shueisha. Art by Kohei Horikoshi.
Disney broke their promise that their upcoming Percy Jackson and the Olympians series would “be closely aligned with Disney Hyperion’s best-selling book series by award-winning author Rick Riordan” by race-swapping both Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood.
On May 5th, Disney announced they cast Leah Sava Jeffries to play Annabeth Chase and Aryan Simhadri to play Grover Underwood. Neither of the actors look anything like how they are described in Riordan’s book series or depicted in official artwork and graphic novels.
Leah Sava Jeffries, Walker Scobell, and Aryan Simhadri
Nevertheless, Riordan praised the castings on his website. First, discussing Simhadri’s casting he stated, “In his auditions for Grover Underwood, Aryan won our hearts. He had me laughing out loud with his delivery and timing. He has a mixture of sweetness, humor and internal toughness that is perfect for our favorite satyr.”
He added, “Grover has some big flying shoes to fill, but Aryan is exactly the right guy for the job. He and Walker already have a great dynamic together. And the visual magic we will be using to give Aryan his satyr’s goat legs is next-level stuff. Wait until you see!”
Source: Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief
Then discussing Jeffries he said, “Out of all the talented actors we looked at for this role, Leah Sava Jeffries quickly became my number one choice for Annabeth.”
He added, ” Leah is exactly the way I imagined Annabeth in the books: smart, strong and courageous, a true daughter of Athena who has zero patience for the foolishness of a certain Seaweed Brain. Watching her act with Walker and Aryan, I saw Annabeth Chase come to life. As soon as you see her on the screen, you will know what I mean. The Wise Girl has arrived!”
Source: Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief
RELATED: Disney Breaks Their Percy Jackson Promise, Race Swaps Grover And Annabeth
In response to people critical of these casting decisions given they do not align with Riordan’s original descriptions in his books and their subsequent portrayal in the graphic novel adaptations, My Hero Academia voice actress Anairis Quiñones attacked these fans calling them racist.
She wrote on Twitter, “the gymnastics ppl will do to justify their racism is bizarre.”
Source: Anairis Quiñones Twitter
Quiñones then tweeted, “‘the author approving the cast doesn’t mean anything, they were paid to along with it!!’ or maybe they’re open-minded?? Maybe over the past 15 years since he wrote the book he changed his mind about his characters? Maybe he’s not racist???”
Source: Anairis Quiñones Twitter
She concluded the thread by attacking J.K. Rowling as transphobic, “‘Harry Potter movies stuck to canon, JKR made sure of it!!’ 1) JKR is constantly proving herself to be transphobic and attention-seeking to the point that the HP fandom doesn’t enjoy it the same. 2) Have you read the books? The descriptions are NOT one to one with the cast.”
Source: Anairis Quiñones Twitter
Quiñones wasn’t the only one to attack fans critical of the casting decision. Riordan’s wife, Becky, ironically decided to decry hate by calling those critical of the casting decision “haters.”
She tweeted, “A while back you (the fans) and I agreed to make these handles as kid friendly safe places as possible.”
“We give no room to demagoguery. We focus on the positive, We are supportive and uplifting. We encourage fans to not give space to hate speech veiled or blatant. #DoNotTweetHate.”
Source: Becky Riordan Twitter
She followed that up writing, “I will also tell you something I know is a fact. Rick’s books open people’s minds. We get letters all the time that tell us this. Our TV show can do the same.”
“Yelling at haters will get us no where. Do not give their hate fires oxygen. #DoNotTweetHate,” she concluded.
Source: Becky Riordan Twitter
It’s unclear what Riordan means when she claims she aims to use the TV show to change people’s minds. Disney has made it clear they want to change hearts and minds when it comes to grooming children, promoting transgenderism, and even child mutilation.
The Walt Disney Company publicly opposed an anti-grooming bill in the state of Florida that prevents instruction of sexual orientation and gender ideology. Not only did they oppose a bill stopping instruction on these insidious ideas, but the company’s CEO made it clear they would circumvent the law by targeting these children through their content programming.
Bob Chapek attend the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness World Premiere at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, CA on Monday, May 2, 2022.
(photo: Alex J. Berliner/ABImages)
Chapek declared, “And because this struggle is much bigger than any one bill in any one state, I believe the best way for our company to bring about lasting change is through the inspiring content we produce, the welcoming culture we create, and the diverse community organizations we support.”
“There’s a reason content is at the top of this list. For nearly a century, our company’s stories have opened minds, inspired dreams, shown the world both as it is and how we wish it could be, and now more than ever before, represent the incredible diversity of our society,” he stated.
“We are telling important stories, raising voices, and I believe, changing hearts and minds,” he added.
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 18: (L-R) Executive Producer and Marvel Studios Co-President Louis D’Esposito and CEO of Disney Bob Chapek arrive at the Premiere of Marvel Studios’ Eternals on October 18, 2021 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
On top of Chapek promising the company intends to change hearts and minds on these topics through their content, the company also revealed their benefits package allows parents to mutilate their children through “transition” operations and treatment.
NEW: Disney has adopted a benefits program to assist employees and their minor children with “gender affirmation procedures.” This type of treatment typically includes puberty blockers, breast removal, and genital surgeries for “kids who are transitioning.” pic.twitter.com/a2zSSboe0S
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) April 7, 2022
If Becky Riordan was serious about stopping hate, she and her husband would sever business operations with The Walt Disney Company. However, it seems abundantly clear from her tweets that she’s not.
As for Quiñones, being critical of casting decisions does not make you racist, to claim so is a lie.
Source: Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
What do you make of Quiñones’ and Becky Riordan’s comments?
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