People want to see people who look like themselves.
That's the general wisdom of hollywood and advertisers.
An Indian friend of mine recently let me in on a secret: No Indian he knows likes Jinder Mahal. Vince McMahon crowned him the first Indian WWE champion, to tap into the vast Indian market. India was not impressed.. They liked The Rock. They LOVES Stone Cold Steve Austin. They were crazy about Undertaker. Not too many seemed to like Jinder Mahal.
That got me thinking, Isn't the conventional wisdom that says you want to see someone who looks like you demonstrably false? What about the "Kung Fu" craze of the 1970's? Lot of people seeing stars that look nothing like them.
What about Blaxploitation?
How about the Japanopholiles, and their love of Japanese cinema?
What about white kids and their obsession with black rappers?
I mean, you can cry "exploitation/side show circus freaks" if you want, but we're talking about entertainment here. I'm not sure escapism and "dignity" really factor into it.
No one likes Han Solo because he's a white guy. They like him because he's a wise cracking rogue who shoots first. Any comparable guy of ANY race could have been Han Solo. Any woman could have, for that matter, too.