Although pretty much all of the projects tamed by Taylor Sheridan have been absolute pieces of real masterworks, Wind River, somehow, surpassed all of those expectations by tremendous margins. But while it was a major blockbuster success both at the global box offices as well as among critics and general audiences, it also received some typical scathing criticism from some viewers.
Other things apart, one of the most nitpicked parts of the iconic masterpiece from 2017 that might as well be called its biggest criticism was casting Jeremy Renner in the lead instead of an Indigenous actor. However, as harshly as critics pointed this one primary feature of the movie out, Sheridan also didn’t quite have the choice if he really wanted to get people to watch the film in the first place.
Wind River‘s Greatest Criticism is Connected to Its Male Lead
Released in 2017, Wind River perfectly delivered to the expectations of fans and viewers, giving Indigenous people the true recognition and voice that they deserve in a story made about them, for them. However, it wasn’t one without criticism, and the film’s biggest criticism is directly connected to its male lead, Jeremy Renner‘s Cory Lambert.
While Renner delivered one of the absolute best performances of his lifetime, his casting didn’t sit well with critics. This was because the entire movie was based on the modern American West by Taylor Sheridan on neo-Western crime themes, and casting a non-Indigenous actor in the lead didn’t quite sit well along these lines.
If anything, this casting choice showed that the film was still taken from the White savior narrative, and thus, it was only shown through the eyes of a non-Indigenous person. Because of this reason, the heroic slate was presented to Renner’s character at the end, which failed to please a lot of fans because of all too understandable reasons, especially for the Indigenous fans.
In comparison, the only thing fans had for Gil Birmingham, who is of Comanche ancestry and played the murdered victim’s father Martin Hanson, was a mere sense of closure and sympathy. That being said, this casting feature indeed was a major setback of the otherwise masterpiece as it made the incredible piece of work feel out of tune.
However, Sheridan practically couldn’t do anything about it. While Renner’s casting made the film feel like it was missing an essential mark, it was also necessary to garner viewers’ attention towards the movie. This was because of the star power, which couldn’t have been otherwise since Indigenous actors are still a long way from getting the true recognition that they deserve.
All of this being put out there, it is only understandable that the mastermind must have inevitably been at a crossroads while making this choice because choosing an Indigenous actor over Renner would have affected the film’s financing and marketing, and choosing Renner would have resulted in the debate that is currently raging on the issue today.
That being said, this ironic situation more or less justifies the reasoning behind Sheridan’s final choice. However, fans still seem to have mixed opinions on this matter.
Redditors Have Somewhat Mixed Opinions on This Matter
On the one hand, while some fans are crediting Sheridan for choosing the film’s visibility and existence over its genuineness by casting Renner in the lead, on the other hand, some other fans are critiquing the piece and simply calling it “wish fulfillment on Sheridan’s part.”
All in all, here’s what some of the top reviews say on the r/blankies subreddit debating on this matter:
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Well, the fan concern is valid too, since they’re the ones watching the movie. At the same time, as mentioned previously, Sheridan doesn’t seem to have had quite a lot of choices while bringing in Renner as one of the lead casts, so his point of view needs to be put into observation while debating on this topic as well.
You can watch Wind River on Prime Video.
