It hasn’t been the smoothest of launches for The CW’s Batwoman, which has sadly garnered a campaign to vote down the trailer. People just don’t seem to like the idea of the new series’ feminist message, which is probably not helped by the preview’s playful acknowledgement of Kate Kane stepping into the role left by her cousin Bruce Wayne. Star Ruby Rose has now even had to respond to criticism that her gender-fluid identity makes her a poor choice for the lesbian Batwoman.
To be fair to Rose, she didn’t shy away from dismissing the criticism outright. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the actress had this to say:
“My initial response was ‘Pfft!’ And then I was like, ‘Wait. Let me just figure this one out. How do I right this wrong, because if someone out there is upset by this, I need to know why and how to fix it.”
Furthermore, Rose is willing to admit that:
“You have to keep up with the terminology. When I got cast as a lesbian in Batwoman, I didn’t know that being a gender-fluid woman meant that I couldn’t be a lesbian because I’m not a woman — not considered lesbian enough.”
Arguing that an actress isn’t ‘lesbian enough’ to play one on TV doesn’t really hold much water for me. I mean, why can’t people just celebrate positive representation without having to pick apart whether the actor’s authentic enough for the role? While I agree that someone with a strong personal identification with a character should be considered for the part, it doesn’t always mean they’re the right choice.
And it’s not as if The CW is against taking this approach, having recently cast a trans actress to play a trans character on Supergirl. Based on the trailer for the show, and Rose’s appearances in Orange is the New Black and John Wick 2, I think she certainly has the chops to play Batwoman.