A Rose By Any Other Bat

A funny thing happens when we get what we’ve been asking for. Sometimes, we’re still not happy. Earlier this week it was announced that Ruby Rose had been cast as Batwoman for a crossover and then stand-alone series about the superhero for The CW. You may recall that casting for the role has looked for an out lesbian actress to play the out lesbian superhero, a.k.a. Kate Kane.

Now, I’m not a Ruby Rose stan. But I’m not a Ruby Rose hater either. I am glad an out actress with some star power has been cast in the role. It might help attract more viewers to a show that will probably have a niche audience, at least to start. And, let’s be honest, her face is undeniably not bad.

Do I have some questions about her acting abilities? Sure. But she also hasn’t been cast in the greatest roles. I actually liked her in “John Wick 2,” though to be fair she does not talk at all in the film – just scowl and make hand gestures. She was OK in “Orange Is the New Black,” but to be fair she was mostly there to look pretty and make Alex Vause jealous.

But I think she could do fine, perhaps well even, as a Batwoman. She has displayed some good physicality in “John Wick 2” and got chewed up by the turbine exceptionally in “Resident Evil: The Final Chapter.” Granted, I am not a Batwoman expert. I know when the modern Batwoman debuted around 2006 as an out lesbian who got kicked out of military school for being gay and now is a street fighter on a mission of social justice. And she has long flowing red hair. But, you know, wigs exist so we’re fine.

This casting has apparently set off a torrent of unhappy gay lady reactions on Twitter and elsewhere. Many centered around her acting skills. Others complaining she was an obvious choice – which is kind of funny because there was a time not so very long ago that there were zero obvious choices when it come to out lesbian actresses. And then some seemed to be mad, I think, that she was too traditionally attractive and therefore dudes (and straight gals) dig her too much.

For what it is worth, Batwoman co-creator Greg Rucka seemed pretty cool with Ruby Rose as Batwoman.

Look, are there other actresses they could have found for the role – certainly. I’ll put in my plug for more diversity, always. But, again, I have no real issue with Ruby Rose. This isn’t Shakespeare; it’s a superhero show. And, as a person, I do not believe Ruby Rose has done anything so heinous to have scorn heaped on her by the community. To my knowledge she hasn’t stolen trans roles or played a white-washed character or dated union-busting tech billionaires or said we need to give Donald Trump a chance or anything similarly morally repugnant. She’s just been in some movies that weren’t possibly the greatest. That’s not a sin, that’s Hollywood.

p.s. While Ruby may have posted (and then promptly deleted) some dumb Instagram comment buried in a thread of comments about Lovato back in 2013 (and outing isn’t good, obviously), they appear to be extremely friendly and very supportive today. So, again, it doesn’t seem an unforgiveable offense. Stupid and thoughtless, maybe. Also, people really read deep into celebrities Insta comments? Who knew.