The more that we find out about Paramount+’s Teen Wolf movie the more we wonder, “Is this something they should be doing?” And this is coming from a writer who is a long-time fan of Teen Wolf to the point where a triskelion tattoo is now on her body. But with the latest news about the movie, cast announcements in particular, we have to wonder why Teen Wolf thought it was a good idea to allegedly not pay Arden Cho what she was worth.
Let’s backtrack a little.
According to Deadline, Tyler Posey is set to return as lead Scott McCall in the upcoming sequel to the MTV series from 2011. Set to return with him are Crystal Reed, Holland Roden, Colton Haynes, and Shelley Hennig. Reed’s character of Allison Argent is a whole other conversation to be had because last Teen Wolf left off she was dead. But yay, we’re glad that Lydia, Jackson, and Malia are going to be back and kicking some supernatural ass because that’s what this show is all about.
They are joined by Linden Ashby, JR Bourne, Melissa Ponzio, Dylan Sprayberry, Orny Adams, Seth Gilliam, and Ryan Kelley.
But honestly, it’s the missing cast members that give us pause. We’re talking Dylan O’Brien, Tyler Hoechlin, and Arden Cho. O’Brien, we get. He’s got a full docket and probably can’t get away even though we’ll miss him and the heart of this series that is Stiles Stilinski. The same thing with Hoechlin and Cho on the career front too. They will be missed but we understand. What we don’t get, and what’s made us livid enough to write this, are the rumors that Cho was offered half of what her female counterparts were when in talks on returning for the movie.
Cho, who was recurring in season 3 and a series regular in seasons 4 and 5, is one of our favorite characters. And when she left, it devastated us and placed a glaring focus on how they underutilized her character the further along her character got into the show despite being one of the most skilled and powerful supernatural creatures on Teen Wolf. Also, there was the fact that she was the only woman of color among the four female series regular cast members and we were here for that Asian representation.
Teen Wolf: The Movie offered an opportunity to right a wrong when it came to Cho’s character of Kira and her underutilization. Instead Paramount+ offered Cho hald of what her female counterparts were being paid as if she wouldn’t find out in a time where pay transparency is becoming more common place. To say this is insulting is an understatement. Cho worked her ass off on Teen Wolf and the audacity to pay her less than what she deserves adds to the never-ending shitshow that is paying women of color less.
And we’re proud of Arden Cho for saying no. We’re proud of her for standing up for herself. Because she deserves to be paid the same as her counterparts and not a penny less. What we’re not proud of is how Paramount+ is handling this. It speaks to the environment surrounding the Teen Wolf movie and makes us side-eye their other shows and properties and how much they’re paying their women of color. Are they being paid fairly? Is there transparency? We sure hope so and wish the best of luck to Cho and all her future projects.
Teen Wolf: The Movie is set to premiere on Paramount+.
