Yesterday the internet was abuzz with news of the cast for the new instalment of the X-Men movie franchise. X-Men: Apocalypse will feature three new cast members; Alexandra Shipp, Sophie Turner, and Tye Sheridan who will play younger versions of the popular Marvel comic superheroes Storm, Jean Grey and Cyclops.
The X-Men comic books - and more recently the movies inspired by them - are adored by thousands if not millions of fans globally. But aside from the usual excitement and congratulatory posts that usually follow casting updates on eagerly anticipated movies, many on social media took this opportunity to express their disappointment in the director’s casting choice for the superhero Storm. And what would that disappointment be? That since the X-Men movies franchise began, Storm has constantly been depicted by light skinned actresses, something that is not consistent with what is known about the character based on the comics and something that the makers of the movie evidently see no issue with.