"Who's playing Che Guevara, Kevin Spacey?": James Franco ethnicity explored as actor's casting as Fidel Castro sparks online backlash

American actor James Franco faced severe backlash online after the announcement that he would be playing the role of Fidel Castro in Alina of Cuba.

The upcoming film will be helmed by Miguel Bardem and will be based on the life of Alina Fernandez, one of Castro's most outspoken critics who lived in Cuba until 1999. She fled to Spain after that, using a wig and false papers.

The real Alina Fernandez will be serving as the biographical consultant for the film, and has reportedly given her blessing to Franco's selection. However, people weren't particularly happy with Franco's casting and took to Twitter to vent out their feelings.

Many fans slammed the casting and stated that it is unfair and disrespectful to Latino actors. One fan even asked, "Who's playing Che Guevara, Kevin Spacey?"

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James Franco ethnicity explored amid backlash on his recent Fidel Castro casting

Born on April 19, 1978, James Franco is the son of Douglas Eugene Franco and Betsy Franco. His father, who passed away in 2011, was a businessman in Silicon Valley, while his mother is an author and a screenwriter.

James is the eldest child of the duo's three kids. The other two, Tom and Dave Franco, are artists and actors respectively.

As per Ethnicelebs, Franco's father was of half Swedish and half Portuguese/Madeiran descent. Meanwhile, his mother is Jewish from several descents (German Jewish, Lithuanian Jewish, Russian Jewish and Polish Jewish).

Franco's paternal grandfather was born in Illinois and was the child of Portuguese emigrants hailing from the Madeira islands. His grandmother was from Illinois and had a Swedish decent.

The Why Him? star has previously claimed in his interviews that he is not religious even though he is Jewish.

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Twitter was not happy with James Franco's casting as Fidel Castro

As news of James Franco essaying the role of Fidel Castro went viral, fans weren't happy and slammed his casting. Other than saying that it wasn't fair to the Latino actors, they also said that it is disrespectful to Latino cinema to cast someone who isn't from their descent. Fans also pointed at the controversial allegations the actor has been facing for several years.

Some questioned the casting, while others had suggestions about Latino actors who could've been cast in the film. Others just took it as an opportunity to diss Franco.

From the deluge of tweets on Twitter after the announcement, it was clear that James Franco was truly the incorrect choice for the role of Fidel Castro. Most people were just frustrated at the lack of diversity and inclusion the makers of the film showed as they cast Franco as Castro.

The announcement of James Franco being cast in Alina of Cuba comes weeks after it was revealed that he would star in Billie August's coming-of-age period film, Me, You. The film will mark the Oscar nominee's return to the silver screen four years after he faced allegations of s*xual abuse.

While speaking to news outlet EW via email, John Martinez O'Felan, a film producer, revealed that have a special plan to make James Franco look like Fidel Castro.

He said:

"To bring the character of Fidel Castro to life, working with James Franco, will be his long-time makeup collaborator Nana Fischer (Golden Globe winner, The Disaster Artist) and dialect coach Jessica Drake (The Batman, Bohemian Rhapsody), who he brought with him."

Entertainment Weekly confirmed the news of Franco's casting on August 4 and stated that Franco will be joining Ana Villafañe who will play the character of Alina. Mia Maestro will essay the role of Cuban socialite and Fernandez's mother, Natalia "Naty" Revuelta. The latter had an affair with Castro after which she got pregnant and gave birth to Alice.

Written by Nilo Cruz and Jose Rivera, the upcoming film will begin its shooting this month in Colombia's Cartagena and Bogota. It also stars Alanna de la Rosa, Maria Cecilia Botero, Harding Junior, Sian Chiong, and Rafael Ernesto Hernández.