KUANG’S NEWS
On Wednesday, February 28th, 2024, notable author and academic R.F Kuang surprised fans by taking to Instagram and announcing that a live-action adaptation of her best-selling novel Babel: An Arcane History is currently in the works. The independent studio Wiip (their works include the live-action adaptations of The Summer I Turned Pretty and Dickinson) optioned the novel to Temple Hill Studios (films Twilight and Love, Simon are under their belt).
Babel follows Robin Swift, a boy from Canton who loses his family to the cholera epidemic in 1828. Before he perishes, Professor Lovell of Oxford University saves the boy’s life and takes him to London, England. In London, Lovell instructs Robin to vigorously study languages to enrol in Babel: Oxford’s Translation Institute. Babel is the headquarters for silver work, a fantasy element where translations are engraved onto bars of silver to create magical results. Once Robin enrols, he views Oxford and Babel as a paradise. However, he slowly discovers hidden and plain truths about Babel and The Empire’s role in using silver to oppress the world. This pushes him to reevaluate his morals and decide where he stands.
THE INITIAL REACTION
Following this news, fan reactions are primarily cheerful. Many comments under Kuang’s post are celebratory, showing fans’ excitement to see this story in live-action form. For example, one instagram user states: “no frikin way this is wild! i was reading babel this morning and was thinking that the world needs to see a screen adaptation bc it’s so good! what a dream! congratulations on all your work” (@maia_moo24). However, despite the many positive responses, fans are also expressing their worries, which relate to the accuracy of characters and faithfulness to original storylines and themes.
CHARACTERS, STORYLINES AND THEMES IN BABEL: WHY ARE FANS WORRIED?
- Accuracy of Casting
In Babel, the ethnicities and languages of these characters, especially protagonist Robin and his friends Victoria, Ramy and Letty are incredibly vital to their actions, motivations and experiences throughout the story. Consequently, many comments claim that the actors cast for the live-action must be of “the right ethnicity and speak the language the characters do” (@anj_nautityal). For example, throughout the story, the way the protagonist Robin Swift uses his native languages , Mandarin and Cantonese, shows readers the stage his character is in. The way he uses it at the very end of the novel fully reveals his growth
- Faithfulness to Original Storylines/Themes
Babel is a counter-hegemonic piece that critiques Western imperialism and encourages marginalized people to stand up against it. It also provides readers with historical education that the dominant systems of education ignore. These features make the novel appealing and impactful to many readers. As a result, fans express a desire for the adaptation to be “as accurate to the book as possible” and maintain its “anti-colonial themes” (@ellysezou). Essentially, fans believe that if important details of the book are cut out for time or marketability reasons, it will take away from Kuang’s original message and turn the adaptation into a more shallow version of its predecessor.
Based on the comments above, Kuang’s fans are already anxiously considering things that could go wrong about this work. But where does the uncertainty and doubt among these readers come from? The concerns fans above mention are nothing new. They echo disappointments readers continue to feel towards past and present live-action adaptations of the books they love. Time and time again, novel fans watch as film adaptations change the characters and plots in ways that take away vital things they enjoy about the work.
THE PAST AS THE SOURCE OF DISTRUST: CARRIE FILM ADAPTATIONS AND WHAT WENT WRONG FOR READERS
Oftentimes, Hollywood casting depends on conventional “marketable” looks, resulting in elements of characters that do not meet the status quo being cut from films. Similarly, when these storylines and themes of a novel do not fit Hollywood ideals, filmmakers behind adaptations commonly do not prioritize them. All of this, of course, occurs at the disappointment of many readers.
Stephen King’s novel Carrie illustrates this extremely well. The novel follows Carrie, an ostracized teen who embarks on a violent quest for revenge following a humiliating incident at her senior prom. In the 1976, 2002 and 2015 adaptations, actresses Sissy Spacek, Angela Bettis and Chloe Grace Moretz play the protagonist. As a result, when many imagine Carrie, they visualize a skinny, blonde young woman. To contrast this, in the novel, King describes her as “a chunky girl with pimples on her neck, back, and buttocks”( King 4). Similar to the ways that ethnicity and language interact with Babel’s characters, Carrie’s weight contributes a lot to her identity in the books. Many readers feel that the absence of her fatness “defeats the purpose of creating a sympathetic “monster”‘ (Bec) which is a key aspect of her characterization. Through this physical change, the film also waters down a vital theme of ostracization, “Carrie’s” story is about how rigid societal standards cause harm, and making Carrie a skinny woman who meets many of these standards defeats the original purpose of King’s work (Bec). Additionally, since many scenes in the book show other characters picking at Carrie for her size, taking this aspect away affects the broader storyline, forcing the film to stray from the source material. Similarly, in a Babel adaptation, taking away aspects that highlight anti-colonialism would deviate from Kuang’s preferred reading and make the story quite redundant.
Cases like Carrie show why many book fans are hesitant to open their arms to live-action adaptations. In several cases, live-action adaptations mean sacrificing character traits, themes and details within the storyline.
concluding thoughts
Kuang’s announcement of a live-action adaptation of Babel: An Arcane History has generated both excitement and concern among fans. While the prospect of seeing the beloved novel brought to life on screen is thrilling to many, there are apprehensions regarding the efforts of the adaptation to retain content from its source. Fans express a strong desire for the casting to accurately reflect the ethnicities and languages of the characters, as well as maintain the anti-colonial themes inherent in the book. Past disappointments with live-action adaptations, such as alterations to characters, storylines and themes have contributed to this mistrust among fans. To build a foundation of trust in this area, those involved with the production of Babel and other live-action adaptations must not only closely read the source material, but also ensure the perspectives of the author and fans are put on the forefront. This will result in successful adaptations that attract audiences while maintaining the integrity of original written works.
Perhaps there may be a day where book fans are confident in live action versions of their preferred reads. For now, however, all Babel fans can do is hope for the best.