A change in casting for 'A Wrinkle In Time' is a change for media

The beloved children's book, "A Wrinkle In Time" has finally become a feature film. Oscar-nominated director, Ava DuVernay took a different approach to casting. The story is about a couple of scientists who have four biological children. The father goes missing and two of their children go through time and space to find him. It has been over 40 years since the book was published and now, changes have been made about what races and ethnicities we see portray these famous characters.

The family is not just white

The family, in the book, is Caucasian, but in the film, it is very different. They have a Caucasian father, African-American mother, and there are only two children. The daughter is biological and they adopt a Latin-American boy. Throughout the film, their race is never a point of discussion. This demonstrates that family is what you make of it. The story talks about the power of love, light, and how much we can make a difference in the universe. Since the book originally had a white family, the film's approach is different but not distracting.

The Mrs' are different races

There are three beings that help the children find their father. They are not human, but they are represented as female. Mrs. Who is played by Indian-American actress, writer, and producer Mindy Kaling. Mrs. Which is played by media mogul Oprah Winfrey. Mrs. Whatsit is played by the Caucasian award-winning actress and producer, Reese Witherspoon.

Other diversity aspects

There are several other examples of minor characters that continue the diversity aspect. The school principal is played by African-American actor, André Holland, the bully (not really mentioned in the book) is a Caucasian teenage girl, and a villain is played by Mexican-American actor, Michael Peña. The movie was filmed in New Zealand and the United States.

IMDB notes that while in New Zealand, the cast and crew were welcomed by the indigenous peoples of New Zealand with a traditional Maori powhiri, or welcoming ceremony and a karakia, or prayer.

What really matters

This film is an example of a change in media. The story's setting is the universe and while most of the cast and crew are Americans, it is a start at showing the diversity that Earth has. DuVernay said on Cinemablend that "I hope this kind of film is the new normal and that they don't see anything odd or unique about a cast like this. I think we're a generation that's moving closer and closer to that, so that's a beautiful thing." I spoke with my little cousin who is nine-years-old. She enjoyed the film, watching it twice in theaters, and she had read the book for school.

I asked her what she thought of the casting. She never thought twice about how the film changed the ethnicities of the characters. It looks like there will not only be a demand for diversity, it is and will be the new normal. That is indeed, a beautiful thing.