Tony Oliver, head writer for the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, has acknowledged that casting a Black actor as the Black Ranger and an Asian actor as the Yellow Ranger in the 1990s children’s show was a “mistake.”
His comments feature in the new Investigation Discovery series, Hollywood Demons, where he explains that the stereotypical nature of the casting wasn’t initially recognised by the creative team.
The series, which premiered in 1993, starred Walter Emanuel Jones as Zack Taylor, the Black Ranger, and Thuy Trang as Trini Kwan, the Yellow Ranger. Oliver states in the documentary that “none of us [were] thinking stereotypes” when the initial casting decisions were made, which allowed the show to proceed for two seasons with these characterisations. He credits his assistant for pointing out the issue during a meeting. “It was such a mistake,” Oliver admits.
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Oliver elaborated that the casting sought actors who embodied certain traits: the Black Ranger was envisioned as having “the swagger of the group,” while the Yellow Ranger was seen as “the peaceful one, who tends to be the conscience of the group.” He also noted that Trang was not the original actor cast as the Yellow Ranger; Audri Dubois was initially in the role but left due to a pay dispute, leading to Trang’s casting and her subsequent insertion into the already-filmed pilot episode.
Interestingly, behind-the-scenes footage included in the documentary reveals that the cast themselves were aware of the problematic implications of the casting. In one clip, Walter Emanuel Jones can be heard saying, “My name’s Walter Jones, I play Zack. I’m Black, and I play the Black Ranger — go figure.”
Shuki Levy, co-creator of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, had previously told Complex that the casting of Jones and Trang “wasn’t intentional at all,” citing his and Haim Saban’s unfamiliarity with American racial dynamics due to their upbringing in Israel.
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Amy Jo Johnson, the original Pink Ranger, Kimberly Hart, recalled that Walter Jones “used to crack good-humoured jokes about that,” adding, “I think it’s funny if it was done unintentionally by the big bosses. But really? Come on. It wouldn’t happen today.”
The documentary also touches on the 2017 Power Rangers movie reboot, which saw a Black actor, RJ Cyler, cast as the Blue Ranger and an Asian actor, Ludi Lin, as the Black Ranger, while Becky G, who is Latina, played the Yellow Ranger. An article from The Independent at the time highlighted disappointment over the ambiguous portrayal of the Yellow Ranger’s queerness in the film.
The Hollywood Demons episode featuring Tony Oliver’s reflections premiered on April 7th.
