By Guest Contributor: Lakshmi Gandhi (@LakshmiGandhi)
I was slightly jet lagged on my commute home Monday night. So, at first, I thought the stream of tweets invading my timeline buzzing about Leonardo DiCaprio possibly playing the beloved Sufi poet Rumi were part of some sort of elaborate joke. After all, Hollywood must be paying at least a little bit of attention to the 2016 Oscars controversy and online campaigns like #whitewashedOUT and #AAIronFist, right? RIGHT?
Actually, no.
The Guardian reports that screenwriter David Franzoni (who also worked on the Oscar-winning film Gladiator) has signed on to work on a new biopic based on the life of the 13th century Persian poet. Franzoni says he hopes the film will challenge anti-Muslim stereotypes… by casting non-Muslims to play the film’s primary roles.
“Franzoni and Brown said they would like Leonardo DiCaprio to play Rumi, and Robert Downey, Jr. to star as Shams of Tabriz,” the Guardian reports.
Let’s pause for a second here, and give everyone a moment to get their heads up off their desks, which is where I’m sure they are after reading that last sentence.
Following the jaw-dropping news, Australian comedian Aamer Rahman quickly started the hashtag #RumiWasntWhite in reaction to the story.
White people ruin Ramadan 2016 by announcing their 'Rumi' movie.#RumiWasntWhite pic.twitter.com/1XnxWa8x7O
— Aamer Rahman (@aamer_rahman) June 6, 2016
In his interview with The Guardian, Franzoni explains his rationale for making a biopic on the poet’s life by saying that Rumi is ‘like a Shakespeare’ to much of the world. This is absolutely true, though it could be argued that Rumi’s influence may actually be even greater than the Bard’s. Rumi’s impact on poetry and music can be heard throughout Iran, Turkey, Central and South Asia and beyond.
So, why-oh-why is Franzoni eyeing Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert Downey Jr. to play historical figures who were very much not White?
Apparently, Franzoni doesn’t seem to know any Middle Eastern or South Asian actors who could play Rumi. So, I thought I’d make a list for him. Feel free to nominate your own choices in the comments.
Wouldn’t it be amazing to see the Mr. Robot star in a period drama? Malek has long been outspoken about the need for diverse roles in Hollywood, telling TIME he used to ask himself “Was I too ethnic, or not ethnic enough?”while auditioning for roles early on in his career.
The former Daily Show correspondent didn’t sound too thrilled about the Guardian piece on Twitter. Many comedy fans may not know that Mandvi got his start as a dramatic actor, including his debut in the Merchant-Ivory film The Mystic Masseur.
This is basically just my pitch to see James Floyd cast in more things! Plus, it’s nice to see an actor fully aware of his privilege. When asked about typecasting last year, Floyd told an interviewer that “I [managed to avoid] it because I’m half-white. I’m good enough and versatile enough to play various things, racially or culturally or whatever.”
Ahmed’s powerful performance in 2012’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist was perhaps the best of the movie’s all-star cast. Plus, the film’s soundtrack was filled with traditional Sufi songs (and — randomly — Peter Gabriel.)
Take a listen:
Got your own better actors to play Rumi? Add them to the comments section below!
Lakshmi Gandhi is a journalist and pop culture writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in Metro New York, NBC Asian America and NPR’s Code Switch blog, among other sites. She likes it when readers tweet her @LakshmiGandhi with their thoughts on Asian American issues and romance novels.
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