7 Times Hollywood Whitewashed (And Straightwashed) Comic Book Characters

3. Iron Fist: Whitewashed

Yes, we get it, Danny Rand has always been white in the comics. But the whitewashing here, so to speak, is more historic and contextual than it is necessarily traditional.

You see, the character of Iron Fist was created at a time when comics were dominated by white male voices, and, for the most part, white male readers. The thought of having an Asian-American protagonist simply wasn't broached, and so the character of Danny Rand - a caucasian millionaire and martial-arts master - was created as an analogue for the seventies' newfound martial-arts craze: a process that the character's co-creator stands by (wrongfully) to this day.

What many readers fail to understand is that the Iron Fist mantle is so much more than Rand himself. In Matt Fraction and Ed Brubaker's criminally overlooked run on the character, the full history of the Iron Fist is explored in depth, with there having been 65 other incarnations of the Immortal Weapon prior to his assumption of the mantle.

One such character was Wu Ao-Shi, the so-called Pirate Queen of Pinghai Bay, who assumed the mantle in the 16th century. Other Iron Fists include Bei Bang-Wen - who fought against the British Empire during the Opium War - and Wah Sing-Rand, who took on the mantle in the 31st century. Point being, the character of Danny Rand isn't intrinsic to the role of the Iron Fist; Marvel could've quite easily created a whole new character to fit the bill - one that divested from the original Gil Kane, Roy Thomas creation.

And let's be honest, in spite of Danny's somewhat tempered onscreen redemption, he's never going to get a warm reception. Marvel could (and should, really) shake things up with a Daughters of the Dragon show, which would feature Colleen Wing and Misty Knight as the leads.

Hey, it certainly beats Heroes for Hire for now...