Odessa A’zion Dropped Out Of New Movie Over Casting Controversy, But Her Replacement Has Been Found

The upcoming movie adaptation of the popular novel Deep Cuts was certainly expected to be something that fans of the book would be excited about. Unfortunately, some of the new films' initial excitement wasn’t exactly of the positive sort. It resulted in one actress stepping away from the film, and now her replacement has been found.

It was originally announced that Odessa A’zion, who had been riding a wave of success following her BAFTA-nominated performance in Marty Supreme, had been cast in Deep Cuts, a romance surrounding songwriting, in the role of Zoe, a close friend of the story’s two main characters. However, A’zion’s casting was not met with a positive response, and the actress, seemingly willingly, took herself out of the movie.

Odessa A’zion Met Significant Backlash For Deep Cuts Casting

The issue at hand was that the character of Zoe, as written in the novel Deep Cuts, was both Mexican and Jewish, and Odessa A’zion is neither of those things. Fans of the book immediately cried foul with the casting decision, feeling that the casting was poor representation, and A’zion was potentially taking a role from a Latina actress.

For her part, Odessa A’zion seemed to agree. She took to Instagram to announce that she was dropping out of the project. According to her, she had auditioned for the lead role of the film, but had been offered the supporting part instead. She accepted the part without thinking, apparently unaware of the character’s background. Once she was made aware of the problem, she stepped aside.

Ariela Barer Will Now Take The Supporting Role In Deep Cuts

It’s now being reported by Variety that Ariela Barer has taken on the role. The casting decision should work for those same people who were upset by the original casting, as Barer is the descendant of parents who are both Mexican and Jewish.

Ariela Barer recently appeared as part of The Last of Us cast during Season 2 in the role of Mel. She'll also be familiar to people who have watched all chapters of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as she appeared in The Runaways, available with a Hulu Subscription, in the role of Gert.

Deep Cuts will star Cailee Spaeny and Drew Starkey as characters named Percy and Joe who meet and bond over their shared love of music. The movie is being directed by Sean Dirkin, who previously directed The Iron Claw for A24, the studio behind DeepCuts

Barer may not have been the first choice, but her filmography shows she’s more than capable of the role, and her background is obviously right for the part. This appears to be a case where everybody wins. Considering how well-received Odessa A’zion has been following Marty Supreme, her career is likely to be just fine.