Rings of Power and The Witcher Actually Fail at Diversity Despite Their Ambitions
It happens when all you want to do is check boxes and not come up with a good story.
Amazon's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, as well as Netflix 's The Witcher, have arguably been the most prominent example of media products that strived to promote diversity and criticize those who failed to share the sentiment.
However, many people argue that even with their racially diverse casts and readiness to blast those who are not okay with that as "racist", both The Rings of Power and The Witcher actually fail at their main goal.
According to Redditor BrandonMarshall2021, both Amazon and Netflix fail to back their diversity goals with actual layers that are not only about race but also about culture.
"When you combine racial diversity with cultural diversity it makes the world seem more real and authentic. When you only provide racial diversity without cultural diversity, it just seems out of place in a European medieval/sword and shield setting," the Redditor explained.
Without backing racial diversity with visible cultural differences, Amazon and Netflix may be trying to "depict an ideal society made up with many races but with a homogeneous language and culture". However, such an idea is only good for the real world, and not the fictional worlds of Middle-earth and Rivia.
"I think just like we celebrate and enjoy stories that focus on POC races and cultures, e.g Black Panther, Shang Chi, and the awesome movie Prey (Commanches), then we should also be allowed to celebrate stories with white European settings like in The Witcher and Tolkien," the Redditor concluded.
Fans of both The Witcher and The Rings of Power have blasted the shows for implementing racial diversity without bothering to make sure that it will work within the lore of the universes created by John R.R. Tolkien and Andrzej Sapkowski.
Showrunners, in turn, respond to criticism largely by claiming that those who are not okay with character of color in fictional worlds are simply "racist" — the response that only triggered fans even more.
The Rings of Power is already filming its second season, while The Witcher is set to return for season 3 with Liam Hemsworth instead of Henry Cavill in the titular role.