#smeyer is problematic

Yeah, I have a lot of sympathy for the cast in regards to the bullshit they went through while working on the series. Robert in particular is very open about his dislike for smeyer and the series overall and has continually pointed out problematic aspects about Edward. I think he probably just went on the audition and had fun with it and was his chaotic self that makes him a great actor, only to sign onto the role without really knowing much about it. I don’t think he had a particularly great time working on the series based on various comments he’s made and a lot of that probably has to do with playing a character he absolutely hated in a series he absolutely hated all while being objectified by the writer of the series. It’s just a whole lot of yikes, but I do love that he has never shied away from calling out the bullshit. In regards to Taylor, I do think it was complicated at the time he was cast in the series. He was literally a child and while he was old enough to turn down the role, I assume he probably had a lot of pressure from his agent to initially audition (regardless of how he personally felt about playing the role). So while he does hold some responsibility in regards to the role, I do place the majority of that responsibility on the casting department, producers, his agent, and his parents because again, he was very young when he was cast. While that’s not an excuse to remain ignorant, it definitely changes the power dynamics of things. It is completely inexcusable and deplorable how he and the rest of the wolfpack actors were objectified, especially at such a young age by grown women. Some of them were literal children (and if not they were pretty much all in their very early 20s at the oldest). Why did smeyer write them in such a way while they were so young? Why did the film producers and screenwriters go along with it? It never needed to happen and it’s just wrong, point blank. Someone should’ve put their foot down and said, “this is absolutely not going to happen.” Those women are disgusting for objectifying the actors the way they did and it is very concerning that it ever happened in the first place. Everything regarding the wolfpack characters in the books themselves and the movies was basically handled in an entirely inappropriate and racist manner. I will say that I would have much, much more respect for Taylor if he had actually admitted that he wasn’t indigenous and didn’t claim to be and drew attention to the actual Quileute nation and spoke up on what was problematic with his character/the way the wolfpack characters were written overall. While it’s understandable to an extent that he didn’t do so while working on the series, it would be great to see him actually be honest and do the right thing now, though I doubt that will happen (especially since he has accepted questionable roles as an adult, I remember seeing a post about a character he played who was yet another race aside from white and while he may not have fully known better back in the day, he should definitely know better by now). So yeah, fully agree anon! I think working on the series was probably uncomfortable for most of the actors. It’s interesting, too, when you see who has good memories of the series/posts about it on social media vs. those who talk shit on it/ignore it. I think it’s very telling when you take into account what we know of their personal experiences regarding their characters and the level of objectification they faced while working on the series.