I had no idea this existed

[james_davis_nicoll]

Did anyone else know there was a Remo Williams TV pilot?

(warning: it's a Remo Williams TV pilot)

"Remo Williams TV Pilot opening" (Watch on YouTube)

Comments

[icecreamempress.livejournal.com]

Yes. But I think that would have been the lesser of two evils.

The whole business was dumb; why didn't they just write a new villain if they were so bound & determined to have Cumberbatch, or cast a South Asian actor if they were so bound & determined to have Khan? Ultimately they painted themselves into a stupid racist corner and then went "La la la la I can't hear you".

[canyonwalker.livejournal.com]

I was surprised they cast a White Brit as Khan but I do appreciate the quandary they probably found themselves in. Once the Race Card is played, every move you can make is wrong. To wit:

- Cast a White person as Khan? You're insulting South Asians by "whiting" them out.
- Cast a South Asian actor as Khan? Now you're portraying South Asians as villains.
- Cast a South Asian actor as the villain and add a heroic South Asian character to balance it out? That's obvious pandering.
- Change Khan's last name to Smith so it makes sense cast a White European and no member of an ethnic minority is a villain? Now you're erasing the participation of other cultures from your story.

It's hard to parse out which of these is least bad. That said, I would have preferred the second one. At least it would have aligned with the existing backstory they used.

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

I was surprised they cast a White Brit as Khan but I do appreciate the quandary they probably found themselves in.

Is 'do an original story' completely off the board?

[canyonwalker.livejournal.com]

Is 'do an original story' completely off the board?

Theoretically, no. As a practical matter, given how they've chosen to finance, operate, and market the franchise, yes.