I have a theory that white, straight, cis dudes who rail against fantasy adaptations including women/BIPOC/queer people are doing so because a story set in a world in which their supremacy is unquestioned is an integral part of their enjoyment of said story.
Some might not even realize that is why they feel so strongly that the stories should continue to centre straight, cis white men in the way the source material did. They explain it away as 'defending the canon' or 'historical accuracy.' I have this theory because no amount of strong and logical arguments change their minds. Because, well, it isn't history because there are dragons and magic. Or, the writer of the original story signed off on the changes and agreed with them. Or, the original story came from another generation and the author was a product of a different time - a time in which their publisher might not have let them publish a diverse story. Or, the author never definitively said a character's race or sexuality. Or that genderswapping a character or having that character portrayed by a person of colour doesn't fundamentally change the story.
These arguments don't work because the centring of people they can strongly identify with is a key part of the experience for them. The appeal is escaping our world, where there is a push for diversity and acceptance, into an imagined fantastical, fictional past. Not only do they get to shoot fireballs, but they return to a place where women had far less agency, BIPOC were second-class citizens or worse, and queer people were invisible or persecuted. And they can indulge all of this without judgment because they "just liked the original story."
Admitting this would mean admitting they are shitty people. So instead they fight in the name of 'preserving the canon' or 'keeping to the author's vision.' It's all an excuse.
If these men truly love these stories, they would realize that the stories have to change and reflect the world we actually live in. Otherwise, the work will become dated and irrelevant, and eventually forgotten.
