{"id":106247,"date":"2016-04-08T15:31:42","date_gmt":"2016-04-08T15:31:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/04\/08\/becketted-daisywarriors-agents-of-shields\/"},"modified":"2018-09-02T17:37:10","modified_gmt":"2018-09-02T17:37:10","slug":"becketted-daisywarriors-agents-of-shields","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/04\/08\/becketted-daisywarriors-agents-of-shields\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-106247 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/04\/08\/becketted-daisywarriors-agents-of-shields\/attachment\/106248\/'><img width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/tumblr_o55sgj3So21uavbmdo1_1280-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/tumblr_o55sgj3So21uavbmdo1_1280-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/tumblr_o55sgj3So21uavbmdo1_1280-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"100vw\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/becketted.tumblr.com\/post\/142290042823\" target=\"_blank\">becketted<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><a class=\"tumblr_blog\" href=\"http:\/\/daisywarriors.tumblr.com\/post\/142289857674\" target=\"_blank\">daisywarriors<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2><b><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/articles\/2016\/04\/05\/agents-of-shield-s-chloe-bennet-why-movies-and-marvel-need-to-diversify.html?via=twitter_page\" target=\"_blank\">Agents of SHIELD\u2019s Chloe Bennet: Why Marvel Needs to Diversify<\/a><\/b><\/h2>\n<p><i>TV\u2019s only Asian-American superhero opens up about the need for representation onscreen\u2014and why her band of SHIELD agents totally belong in Marvel\u2019s movies.<\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>\u201cFour years ago, Marvel\u2019s Agents of SHIELD star Chloe Bennet was known professionally as Chloe Wang, aspiring actress and teenage dabbler in Shanghai pop stardom. In the states, however, Hollywood casting agents were less than welcoming. <br \/>At least until she changed her last name.<br \/>\u201cOh, the first audition I went on after I changed my name, I got booked,\u201d Bennet tells The Daily Beast, in an interview timed to Marvel\u2019s Women of Power month. \u201cSo that\u2019s a pretty clear little snippet of how Hollywood works.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>That audition was for the role of Hailey, an office assistant on ABC\u2019s Nashville. That same year, Bennet was cast as the lead in Marvel\u2019s first cinematic universe TV show, the Joss Whedon-created SHIELD. Over three seasons, Skye, a headstrong young \u201chacktivist\u201d who gets recruited by SHIELD and eventually discovers her real identity, the half-Inhuman Daisy Johnson (a.k.a. Quake), has evolved into what is still a rarity on TV: a superhero who happens to be both female and Asian-American.<br \/>\u201cI wish people talked about that more,\u201d Bennet says. \u201cI don\u2019t know if it\u2019s good or bad, but when Supergirl came out, people were like, \u2018This is the only superhero on TV that\u2019s a female!\u2019 And I was like, \u2018Hold on! I\u2019m pretty sure Daisy\u2019s been here.\u2019 And I also happen to be half-Chinese and I\u2019m so proud of that.\u201d<br \/>\u201cI want to be clear because some of my Asian-American fans seem to think I did that [changed last names] because I didn\u2019t want to known as Chinese, but it\u2019s so the opposite,\u201d she adds. \u201cI just wanted to be known as me and let my personality define who I was, rather than my ethnicity.\u201d<br \/>Bennet\u2014who is loud and funny and blunt in conversation\u2014then launches into her SHIELD audition story, told with a mixture of endearing self-loathing and pride.<br \/>\u201cWhen we were down to seven girls [up for the role of Skye], it was this completely diverse group of girls I was up against. And it was really about who was right for the part,\u201d she says. \u201cWe were testing and we came out of the room and I was up next and Joss Whedon was there and said, \u2018Hi.\u2019 I got kind of nervous and looked at him. He just looked really tired. And I was like, \u2018You look like shit\u2019\u2014this right before I went in for my last audition.<br \/><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>\u201cHe started laughing and was like, \u2018Well I am tired,\u2019\u201d she says, groaning at the memory. \u201cAnd I was like, \u2018I mean, you look tired in a good way, like you\u2019re really busy! And accomplished!\u2019 It was so Skye Season 1 that I think he was like, \u2018Yup, that\u2019s her.\u2019\u201d<br \/>Because of Marvel\u2019s \u201ccinematic universe\u201d design, SHIELD takes place during the events of the comic book movie franchise\u2019s big-screen exploits\u2014meaning that whatever havoc the Avengers wreak in their city-smashing adventures has real-world consequences for the show\u2019s on-the-ground SHIELD agents.<br \/>When Captain America: The Winter Soldier revealed that the evil Nazi organization HYDRA had been embedded within SHIELD since shortly after World War II, the show, whose entire first season built up to the events of Winter Soldier, took that and ran with it, spinning out two seasons of intrigue.<br \/><\/i><i><br \/><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>But while Marvel\u2019s movies often affect the show, SHIELD\u2019s narrative rarely bears weight on the big-budget blockbusters\u2014even when the stories it\u2019s telling should. In the upcoming Captain America: Civil War, for example, Marvel\u2019s superheroes choose whether to submit to official government oversight, a measure (called the Sokovia Accords, the onscreen version of the comic books\u2019 Superhero Registration Act) pushed on them by a United Nations panel.<\/i><i><br \/><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>Incorporating SHIELD\u2019s ongoing Inhumans storyline would actually raise the stakes of the movie: the presence of hundreds if not thousands of undiscovered Inhumans (people with the ability to develop superpowers) would give governments extra incentive to push the Sokovia Accords on all superhumans. Recent interviews with Civil War directors Joe and Anthony Russo, however, indicate the directing duo are entirely unconcerned with what\u2019s going on in the world of SHIELD.<\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>\u201cI think we\u2019re all on the same page besides them,\u201d Bennet says, sighing at the missed opportunity. \u201cBut they\u2019re gonna do what they\u2019re gonna do, and I\u2019m really happy with our little show. We\u2019ve been dealing with the topic of Civil War for a while now\u2014at least, Daisy has. She\u2019s a SHIELD agent but also a human and she\u2019s completely torn.\u201d<br \/><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>If Bennet had her way, of course, Civil War would bring certain SHIELD-specific changes to the Marvel universe: \u201cI would like us to be put in the movie,\u201d she laughs. \u201cThat would make sense. I would like the Avengers to find out that Agent Coulson\u2019s still alive. And Daisy\u2019s incredibly powerful. I think you\u2019ll see toward the end of the season her strength as a character and a leader, and her power as a superhero really expands\u2014I\u2019m just saying, the Avengers could use our help, if they just asked.\u201d<br \/>Marvel\u2019s TV universe, in the meantime, continues to expand, with street-level heroes like Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist getting their own Netflix shows. With the latter series\u2019s casting announcement\u2014revealing that Game of Thrones actor Finn Jones will be taking on the role of Danny Rand\u2014a familiar refrain decrying the MCU\u2019s lack of diversity reverberated across the Internet again.<br \/>When asked if she was among the thousands calling for the traditionally white Danny Rand\u2014a kung fu master\u2014to be played by an Asian actor, Bennet answers without missing a beat.<\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>\u201cOne-hundred percent. I actually saw that [casting] news and I can\u2019t lie, I was a little [disappointed],\u201d she says, before breaking into laughter again. \u201cI love Marvel, but\u2026\u201d<br \/>\u201cI know they want to stay true to their characters but, you know, every female character in Marvel comics also has, like, triple-Z-sized boobs,\u201d she reasons. \u201cSo if they cast actors based on the way characters look on the page, I don\u2019t think even Scarlett Johansson\u2014well, maybe Scarlett Johansson\u2014would be in the movies.\u201d<br \/><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i>As for Marvel\u2019s ever-expanding movie arm\u2014which will feature its first character of color in a standalone film in 2018\u2019s Black Panther\u2014Bennet maintains there\u2019s room for improvement there as well.<br \/>\u201cI think they could do better,\u201d she says. \u201cYou know, there are a lot of white guys named Chris. But I think they will, because it\u2019s important. It\u2019s the right thing to do. Marvel\u2019s a smart company and I think they will represent their fans from around the world. They can take note from the way we\u2019re going on the show, \u2018cause we\u2019re doing a pretty good job.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>This is amazing and good and wow.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>becketted: daisywarriors: Agents of SHIELD\u2019s Chloe Bennet: Why Marvel Needs to Diversify TV\u2019s only Asian-American superhero opens up about the need for representation onscreen\u2014and why her band of SHIELD agents totally belong in Marvel\u2019s movies. \u201cFour years ago, Marvel\u2019s Agents of SHIELD star Chloe Bennet was known professionally as Chloe Wang, aspiring actress and teenage &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/2016\/04\/08\/becketted-daisywarriors-agents-of-shields\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[13052,810,4],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106247"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106247"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":106249,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106247\/revisions\/106249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.merindab.com\/private\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}