In mid-August, Zendaya was officially casted to play Mary Jane in “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” a movie that will be released next summer.

This announcement was met with a variety of reactions ranging from extreme excitement to strong disapproval.

As a woman of color being chosen for this role, Zendaya represents a big step in breaking barriers in Hollywood casting.

Especially in the super hero niche of Hollywood, Zendaya stands within two major categories rarely casted as leading roles: women and women of color. This in itself is a huge step.

Admittedly, I was extremely excited but not just because of who Zendaya is, but what or rather who she represents.

It’s no secret that Hollywood is largely male dominated and largely white.

More than 70 percent of Hollywood actors in the top 100 films are white, according to variety.com. Women, on the other hand, represent a 12 percent of the protagonist roles in top-grossing films.

This young woman is not only breaking the glass ceiling in film, but also in music, modeling, and television. Her platform allows her to be a role model to others and serve as a pioneer for all women.

Zendaya is certainly not the first woman of color to hold a leading role in a major film or to spark controversy for her skin tone after being cast  in what people believe to be “white roles.”

Actresses like Quvenzhané Wallis, who played Annie in the 2014 “Annie” and Leslie Jones from the 2016 “Ghostbusters,” have both generated enormous controversy largely due to their skin tone.

Roles rumored to be going to people of color, such as Idris Elba being potentially cast as the next James Bond and a woman of color to play Hermione in the newest Harry Potter movie, have all received their share of backlash. And these  films have yet to hit the big screen.

The controversy surrounding these castings is racially charged without any believable explanation otherwise.

The casting of Hermione as a woman of color was also criticized for “inconsistency” with the movies. But J.K. Rowling herself was quick to point out that the original books described Hermione as having “brown eyes and frizzy hair” without specifying skin color.

The same criticism with racial undertones is made of all the aforementioned movies.

Though these criticisms persist, they cannot stop the progress made by people of color in Hollywood. While we still have a long way to go, any step is an important step if it’s in the right direction.

Zendaya being cast as Mary Jane in the newest “Spiderman” movie is a pretty cool step for Hollywood, and I’m very excited about it.