Kevin Feige Now Explains It Was Mistake Casting Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One in The MCU

When it was first announced that Tilda Swinton was cast as The Ancient One in director Scott Derrickson’s Doctor Strange, it surprised a lot of people. That casting was completely unexpected as everyone was expecting to see an Asian actor in the role. A lot of fans weren’t happy with the whitewashing of the character.

At the time Feige explained the reasoning saying, “The Ancient One is a title that is not exclusively held by any one character, but rather a moniker passed down through time, and in this particular film the embodiment is Celtic. We are very proud to have the enormously talented Tilda Swinton portray this unique and complex character alongside our richly diverse cast.”

The head of Marvel also said, “We didn’t want to play into any of the stereotypes found in the comic books, some of which go back as far as 50 years or more. We felt the idea of gender-swapping the role of The Ancient One was exciting. It opened up possibilities, it was a fresh way into this old and very typical storyline. Why not make the wisest bestower of knowledge in the universe to our heroes in the particular film a woman instead of a man?”

A lot of fans were actually open to those ideas and reasons. In the end, I actually loved what Swinton brought to the character. She was great in the role, but Feige now says that casting her was a mistake. While speaking with Men’s Health for a story about Shang-Chi star Simu Liu, Feige was asked about the casting of Swinton and this was his reply:

“We thought we were being so smart, and so cutting-edge. We’re not going to do the cliche? of the wizened, old, wise Asian man. But it was a wake-up call to say, ‘Well, wait a minute, is there any other way to figure it out? Is there any other way to both not fall into the cliche? and cast an Asian actor?’ And the answer to that, of course, is yes.”

What do you think about Feige’s thoughts on casting Swinton in the role of The Ancient One?