I can't believe they didn't cast Aziz Ansari (Tom Haverford from Parks & Rec) for this movie. They look so similar it's uncanny! http://imgur.com/gallery/Ae5xzEI
I think the film is intended to be a serious drama, so nope.
shareComedians have usually been great in serious dramas, especially if they prove themselves to be extremely talented actors with some real range(Robin Williams is a good example of that.) I like Ansari, so a role like this definitely would have been a nice major change of pace for him.
shareI completely agree. IMO, Williams best work was drama. Michael Keaton is another good example.
shareDev Patel is way more well-known and thus marketable internationally. You can pretty much stop right there regardless of how similar-looking Ansari is or how good he may have been.
shareDev Patel is practically white. This is especially awkward in the first chapter in the movie where everyone else in the village is 10 tones darker and 20 cm shorter, and we're expected to believe he's from the same region, riiiight.
All this after the whitewashing controversy at the 2016 Oscars, you'd think someone in the industry would finally notice that the moviegoers aren't visually impaired.
Not to mention, Dev can't even do a proper Indian accent, while Aziz has done it for years for a living (sure - for comedic purposes, but his exaggerated accent sounds a lot more authentic to me than Dev's perfect British faking something he just doesn't understand (guess he isn't soaked in this like Aziz, as Dev's family didn't even come from India...))
Contrary to the OP, I don't think Aziz looks similar to the historical Ramanujan... Just less white and more capable of playing a southern Indian.
Movie makers don't usually look to cast lookalikes for roles. They weren't looking for a Ramanujan impersonator. That is one of the biggest misconceptions about casting. There are lots of people who are great at impersonating certain people, but they don't get cast in movies about that person.
They want an actor who can give a compelling performance that will give people an emotional connection with the character and story. They want to tell a story with the best possible talent available with the best possible chance for commercial success. If the best marketable talent happens to look and sound exactly like the person they are playing, great. If not, no big deal.
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"Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man."
There are many South Indians with a similar light skin tone and tall height like Dev Patel. However, light-skinned Tamils are a small minority, with the vast majority of them being dark-skinned.
I suppose Ansari should try for serious dramas only, since he is a very poor comedian. Just because someone was part of one show doesn't mean they're capable of anything else. His standups? 0 star ratings on netflix lol. Should stick to acting what he can and leave stand up comedy to the real comics.
shareNetflix' rating system is one of the worst ever. It seems deliberately calibrated so terrible B-movies and straight-to-video garbage which they can cheaply license will have high ratings.
OTOH, Ansari's ratings on IMDb are:
Master of None: 8.3 with 26k votes
Aziz Ansari Live at Madison Square Garden: 6.6 with 1k votes
Aziz Ansari: Buried Alive: 7.3 with 2k votes
Aziz Ansari: Dangerously Delicious: 7.1 with 1.5k votes
Aziz Ansari: Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening: 7.2 with 1.7k votes
The only time he's been genuinely unfunny to me was during his encore for one of his standup specials where he was testing some lame DJ character he was working on for a movie. It was so cringeworthy and a stark contrast to his regular material.
I wouldn't have watched it if he was the lead. I just can't stand that guy. I had to fast forward all his scenes from P&R.
shareAshton Kutcher looks and behaves much more like young Steve Jobs than Michael Fassbender does. And yet it was Michael Fassbender who got all the acclaim and recognition, despite Kutcher giving a more historically accurate portrayal. Audiences simply cannot take Kutcher seriously, even if his looks and personality more closely matches young Steve Jobs.
So even if Aziz Ansari is closer to the real Ramanujan in terms of looks (skin tone, height, features) and cultural background (South Indian, Tamil language), and could give a more accurate portrayal of Ramanujan, it would be a lot harder to sell the movie as a "serious" movie with a comedian in the leading role. But with that said, Aziz has proven himself as a serious actor with Master of None, which was more drama and less comedy.
Dev Patel gives an Oscar worthy performance. The entire movie deserves the Oscar. Overall, great human story, superb artistic accomplishment.
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