On a recent episode of his television show, Bill Maher weighed in on the James Franco-John Leguizamo controversy. Maher contended that Leguizamo should not be complaining about a non-Latino playing Castro because Leguizamo has played other ethnicities in movies in the past. Rick Sanchez fires back saying that Maher is completely missing the point, is oversimplifying the problem, and deceiving his audience just to get laughs. Latinos aren't upset because a non-Latino is playing a Latino role; Latinos are upset because they continue to be represented in negative, stereotypical ways on screen and then the moment a plumb role like this comes around, it goes to a non-Latino. Sanchez is joined by show producer Scotty Mednick and independent filmmaker Edwin Pagan as they break down the problem of Latino type-casting in Hollywood. They conclude that Latinos aren't insisting that they get all the top roles in movies, but rather that the power players in Hollywood need to be open to new ideas and begin casting Latinos in other types of roles besides criminals, gardeners, and, maids. It's not about owning, it's about sharing.
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