Michael Clarke Duncan (left) in the role of Kingpin (right) from the 2003 movie made after the comic Daredevil.

In 2010, rising actor Donald Glover wanted a movie role, one that was so well known that it would have instantly catapulted him into the international spotlight. The role was that of a brilliant but socially outcast high schooler being raised in Queens by his aunt and uncle. The story follows his journey from sullen teen to responsible young man after suffering a great loss — it seemed like the perfect role for a young up-and-comer. Glover's ambitions were instantly met with intense online criticism due to one factor alone: he is black.

While it may seem odd that in this day and age that a large group of people would speak out against casting a role on a purely racial basis, this was no ordinary coming-of-age-tale. This teen's journey does not include avoiding gangs or flirting with girls, but a radioactive spider, the granting of extraordinary abilities, and the rescue of New York City. The role was that of Peter Parker, better known as Spider-Man, and who for over 50 years has been portrayed as white.

The “golden age of comics” is a term used to describe the period of time in the 1940s and '50s when comic books were at the peak of popularity. This is when the superhero archetype was firmly established, with the stories of Batman, Superman and Captain America captivating readers during a time ravaged by war. Due to the terrible state of race relations at the time, there was no place in the market for anything other than a Caucasian hero — at least, not in the market that those in charge would have any interest in reaching.

The most popular heroes who made their debut in the 1960s and '70s, such as Spider-Man and Thor, followed their predecessors. Only in the later years of this period did ethnic heroes start to emerge. These characters, such as Marvel Comics' Luke Cage and Goliath, while representing a step forward for multiculturalism in comics, were relegated to keeping Harlem safe and to a side role in the greater comics universe, respectively.

Back to 2010: the Internet backlash that the #donald4spiderman Twitter campaign recently raised among the comic fan community showed that a large portion of fans, at least those active on the Internet, could not wrap their heads around a black actor player one of their beloved white characters, a sentiment that may be surprising to many in the 21st century. While the role of Peter Parker eventually went to Andrew Garfield, a white actor, the situation raised a unique debate among fans. These are characters who have been lovingly written to have certain personalities for decades are close to the hearts of millions of people worldwide, but are these superheroes, defenders of the good, really defined by the colour of their skin? Or does their meaning run a bit deeper?

There are few comic book characters whose race does matter — Black Panther, the king of the fictional African country of Wakanda, could not be portrayed on screen as a white man, for example — but once the artwork is removed and the story is left to the text, very few superheroes would be identifiable as any Earthly race. Even a character as iconic as Superman, the original and most famous of heroes, is defined by his alien origins, a multitude of superpowers, and a total devotion to the good of everyone on the planet — never as a white man.

“I think the most important thing when adapting these characters to screen is respecting their history,” said Brad Ashton-Haiste, owner of Worlds Away, a store that sells comics, figurines and whole lot more in downtown London. “The majority of superheroes behind the mask could be any colour, as long as the characteristics are all in place.”

Before Donald Glover's campaign, Hollywood raised the ire of Marvel comics fan by casting the late Michael Clarke Duncan as the towering crime lord Kingpin in Daredevil (2003), a character usually portrayed as a giant, bald Caucasian. In the comics, Kingpin serves as a very minor villain who pops up facing off against every hero in New York, usually by sitting in his office and hiring various other thugs, rarely venturing out and doing anything memorable himself. His character is one of physical presence and intimidation, something that Duncan possessed in abundance; his portrayal one of the few positives in an otherwise disappointing film. Regardless of this, fans were still divided simply based on the colour of his skin, a sentiment that echoed on the Internet when Idris Elba was cast as the Norse god Heimdall in 2011's Thor.

It makes sense from a filmmaking perspective for a director to seek these actors out in order to create memorable on-screen roles, yet even the shallowest of changes will cause pissed-off fans to descend onto online message boards in droves. Both Elba and Duncan, towering and talented actors both, brought their own brand of gravitas to what are two relatively minor characters in the comic book pantheon.

“I think nostalgia is the biggest factor that puts blinders on comic fans,” Ashton-Haiste mused. “They are a unique brand of people that are very resistant to change of any kind; people were up in arms when the new Spider-Man was black, even though he is not Peter Parker.” He is referring to Miles Morales, a half-black half-Latino teen who has taken up the role of Spider-Man after the death of Peter Parker in Marvel's Ultimate storylines, which run parallel to their main universe. According to Ashton-Haiste, fan reaction was “less than enthusiastic, but his issues are now selling fairly well.”

Having been in the business of comics for over 20 years, he wants one thing from his entertainment: “Just give me a good story; I couldn't care less whether the character is black or white, as long as I'm reading or watching something written by someone with brains.” He said he feels that the focus should be on the story and the character itself, remaining true to these established characters.

The issue was thrust back into public light in late 2013 when Michael B. Jordan, another black up-and-comer and star of Chronicle, was considered for the role of The Human Torch in the upcoming Fantastic Four series reboot. Young, good-looking and energetic, he seemed like the perfect fit for the daredevil character, yet again many fans were resistant to another of their old favourites receiving a racial switch.

Jordan was confirmed in the role last month, and while a year of rumours numbed the backlash, there will likely be a few dissenting voices speaking up in opposition of the classic characters being “tampered with.”

Whether they like it or not, Jordan is the new Human Torch, and the radical racial switch of a superhero on screen has finally been realized. Now comic fans can spend the next year wondering if Jordan and his on-screen sister (the very white Kate Mara) were brought together by the wonder of adoption.