X-Men fans would be forgiven for suffering from déjà vu right now as a current debate centering about the alleged “whitewashing” of an upcoming mutant character is giving us some serious flashbacks to Fox’s final movie in its X-Men universe. For the moment, Marvel Studios is content to bring back old Fox veterans for the movie side of things in Deadpool 3, but the X-Men ’97 animated series will be revisiting an even older take on the franchise on TV.
As the revival of the beloved ’90s animated series gets ever closer, however, the latest casting news is stirring up some unwanted controversy. Actor Gui Agustini has been announced to have joined the show as the voice of Roberto Da Costa aka Sunspot. While you might expect folks to be excited to see Sunspot join the X-Men animated universe, sadly his inclusion in the series is being overshadowed by some vocal backlash concerning Agustini’s ethnicity.
Many fans are incensed that Roberto’s Afro Brazilian identity, which has long been an important part of his characterization and personal history in the comics, is not being reflected in the show’s casting for the role. Unfortunately, X-Men ’97 showrunner Beau DeMayo — who is a person of color and identifies as queer — weighing into the debate has only increased the discussion surrounding the issue. “Don’t even,” DeMayo responded when accused of whitewashing Sunspot. “Look who you’re talking to. Moving on.”
The reason thing might be ringing bells for those with long memories is that The New Mutants already found itself criticized for the exact same problem when it arrived back in 2020. Actor Henry Zaga, who played Da Costa in live-action, was similarly felt to be lighter-skinned than the character is on the page. In a mirroring of DeMayo’s response, director Josh Boone attempted to address the controversy — by saying that he “saw every shade of the sun” for the part but believed Zaga was the best person for the job — but his words did little to quell the outrage.
Given that X-Men ’97 initially gained positive notices for other more appropriate casting choices — ’90s voice actress Alyson Court has stepped down as Asian heroine Jubilee, for example — it’s a shame to see it bogged down in bad press in this way now. X-Men ’97 is due on Disney Plus in late 2023.