Why is Marvel Being Accused of Antisemitism?
Rumors of a race-change prompt a backlash, charges of racism and antisemitism.
One of Marvel Comic’s most iconic and well-known characters is the Jewish Holocaust survivor Erik Lensherr, also known as the Mutant villain Magneto. To date, two different actors have portrayed him on screen. Sir Ian McKellen, an openly gay elderly Englishman, played an older iteration of Magneto in five films, beginning in the year 2000. Michael Fassbender, an Irish-German actor, played a younger version of the character in four films, starting in 2011’s X-Men: First Class.
Marvel Studios has spent the last eleven years expanding their superhero franchise into the most expansive and diverse cinematic universe Hollywood has ever seen. They have very successfully folded new and largely unknown characters from the comic page onto the screen. Until recently, Magneto was off-limits for Marvel Studios, as the film rights to the character rested with Fox. Now, following a successful merger between Fox and Marvel’s parent company Disney, there are plans to expand the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) further, including Magneto.
This will necessitate a relaunch of the character to comport with the timeline and tenor that the MCU has built over the course of twenty-three, very successful movies…
