In Unexpectedly Perfect Casting: Elizabeth Banks Will Play Rita Repulsa in the Power Rangers Movie
I haven’t been paying too much attention to the Power Rangers reboot film but they’ve gone and cast someone perfect for villain Rita Repulsa – Elizabeth Banks.
I can just see her recreating this now.
The Hollywood Reporter writes:
Dean Israelite, who helmed the time travel-found footage movie Project Almanac, is on board to direct the project, which is being produced by Saban Films’ Haim Saban and Brian Casentini as well as Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey. Allison Shearmur will exec produce.
A quintet of relative newcomers — RJ Cyler, Becky G, Ludi Lin, Naomi Scott, and Dacre Montgomery — are playing the teens who are infused with powers, forming a colorful team who must stop the world from being conquered.
Banks will play classic Power Ranger character Rita Repulsa, an alien witch who has designs on the planet.
Lionsgate, the studio behind The Hunger Games which Banks also starred in, is backing this Power Rangers film. It’s being written by Thor and X-Men: First Class scribes Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz but few other details are known at this point.
Banks has a healthy background in comedy and well, let’s face it, Rita Repulsa may be a villain but we always got a good laugh out of her campy performances. The character has been played by several different women both in live action and animation:
- Machiko Soga (Japanese footage, 1993–1994, 2006)
- Carla Perez (American footage, 1994-1998)
- Julia Cortez (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie)
- Barbara Goodson (voice – Rita Repulsa)
- Susan Brady (voice – Mystic Mother)
Thanks to Wikipedia for that list. Here’s the rest of the cast:
It’s official! #NaomiScott will play the #PinkRanger in the @PowerRangersMovie! Coming in 2017…
A photo posted by Power Rangers (@powerrangersmovie) on
A photo posted by Power Rangers (@powerrangersmovie) on
Only just learning now that it was Carla Perez in the gritty reboot parody. Wow :)
But I wanted her to be She-Hulk!
Not sure how I feel about this… I mean… Were there NO Asian actresses auditioning for the role?
I thought the same at first but then I read a few tweets by this user: https://twitter.com/pockysquirrel
Basically, “Asian villain” is a terrible trope and the Rangers are more POC than not. You know I’m usually a loud mouth on this kind of stuff but it’s good to look at the larger picture here I think.
I just hope they go about it better than the Finches’ recent reworking of Doctor Poison…
The only reason she was Asian in Mighty Morphin is because they just re-used footage from original Japanese show. And after that had to shot additional footage of other Asian woman to fit everything to new things they added.
So, it’s not a problem.