Hi again satc anon here to defend my Joshua is Samantha casting bc I have some argumentssss:
1. I did think of Joshua as charlotte too tbh but I feel like its a very superficial reading of Joshua. Not that I know him ofc but I have always gotten the vibe that there’s a very polished version of himself that he shows especially in Korean content (I assume bc the audience is more conservative?)
2. Which brings me to my next argument: sometimes this character cracks and we see glimpses of the freak inside (some will think of him asking to be choked but I also think the difference between him and Vernon on the thirst tweets videos is also interesting. Joshua translated things directly whereas Vernon tried to soften things a bit. That’s giving Samantha right there)
3. And here I must acknowledge that ofc all idols put on a polished image and they usually are less polished in English content buttt I feel like with Joshua there may be a Jekyll and Hyde levels of difference between the American stoner freak inside and the polished K-pop idol image
4. This is more about why charlotte wouldn’t work as Joshua: charlotte was OBSESSED with having the perfect man, the perfect marriage, her image etc. to a psychotic degree. She never let go ever. If she ever cracked it was bc she was having a meltdown, she didnt have a freak in her. On the other hand, Samantha is a freak and very straight up and horny, but she’s also very big on appearances, she’s literally a pr person/events organizer for a living. (This is also giving a bit of Mingyu now that I’m thinking)
5. Anyway, the point is, I believe in my heart that Joshua hong is a horny freak stoner who in a very paradoxical way cares a lotttt about appearances/image but also will do the most insane shit just bc. Charlotte would die.