On Wednesday, Odessa A’zion said she was dropping out of the A24 film adaptation of Deep Cuts, just two days after she was announced as part of the cast. A’zion had been set to play Zoe Gutierrez, who in the 2025 novel by Holly Brickley is Mexican and Jewish. News that the role would be played by A’zion — who is Jewish but not Mexican — was met with widespread backlash and accusations of whitewashing. “And ppl said we were tripping when we side-eyed her sudden attempt at racial ambiguity,” one person wrote on X. “She played yall and now she gets to play a mexican while actresses like alexa demie contemplate quitting acting due to lack of roles.”
Apparently, A’zion didn’t want the character to be whitewashed either and wasn’t even aware of Zoe’s identity when she agreed to join the cast. In a series of Instagram Stories on Wednesday, the actress said she would be dropping out of the cast. “Guys!! I am with ALL of you and I am NOT doing this movie,” she posted. “Fuck that. I’m OUT.” A’zion thanked fans for “bringing this to my attention” and said she agreed with the complaints. “I’m so so sorry that this happened,” she wrote.
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A’zion wrote she’d initially auditioned for a different part — the main character, Percy — but was offered the role of Zoe instead. She said she hadn’t been aware of the character’s ethnicity because she “hadn’t read the book” and said she “should have paid more attention to all aspects” of the character before accepting the role. “I’d never take a role from someone else that’s meant to do it. That SHOULD do it! That’s not me,” she wrote. “There are a plentitude of people more than capable of playing this role and I am not one of them. I can’t wait to see who it ends up being.”
Deep Cuts will be directed by Sean Durkin and star Cailee Spaeny and Drew Starkey. Saoirse Ronan and Austin Butler had initially been slated to play the starring roles but dropped out owing to scheduling conflicts.
The Cut has reached out to A24 for comment and will update this post if we hear anything back.
