Maitreyi Ramakrishnan criticizes individuals labeled as ‘racists’ for opposing her rumored casting in a live-action ‘Tangled’, stating ‘Y’all Still Need a Hobby’

Since there were rumors about Maitreyi Ramakrishnan from “Never Have I Ever” or Avantika Vandanapu from “Mean Girls” possibly portraying Rapunzel in a live-action “Tangled”, both actresses have been targeted with racist attacks online.

Ramakrishnan responded to the speculation on Tuesday by highlighting that the movie in question is not confirmed. “And they finally woke up to realize it was all just rumors and the sources never existed. good job!” she tweeted. “And to the racists, y’all still need a hobby FR.”

Ramakrishnan continued, “Like for any fancast you may have for any actor, South Asian or not, all the racist trolls can just stay basement dwellers. Y’all probably don’t even go outside to the movies anyway let alone touch grass.”

It’s important to note that Disney has not confirmed a live-action Rapunzel story nor a live-action “Tangled” remake. TikTokers and users of various social media platforms have responded positively and negatively to reports that Ramakrishnan and Vandanapu have screen tested for the part (that doesn’t exist), with some vehemently insisting that only a blonde-haired, blue-eyed actress could fill Rapunzel’s shoes.

Vandanapu’s comments on Instagram have been filled with both support and outrage at the possibility. As one person pointed out, the idea that either actress might play the part of Rapunzel was born entirely of speculation.

One Instagram user wrote, “Y’all are so WEIRD in these comments. It’s a FANcast, as in some fans like her as Rapunzel, just how there’s Sabrina Carpenter fancasts and more. The live-action ‘Tangled’ isn’t even confirmed, literally just a rumor. Use your brains for a second.”

A fancast is what it sounds like: a purely speculative casting for a film or TV show decided upon by a fan of the source material.

The intensity with which so many social media users responded to the suggestions has pointed to a larger concern regarding the rate to which misinformation can spread online. BuzzFeed reported that the rumor that Vandanapu screen tested for the part appeared to be traced to the Twitter account @adoreschandler, who published a since-deleted tweet in March.

That tweet read, “Sources say Avantika and Milo Manheim have been screen testing as Rapunzel and Flynn Rider for the ‘Tangled’ Live-Action.”

From there, fans began to make their own fancasting videos and shared them on Tiktok. At some point, those fancasts turned into “truth” for so many people that both actresses were subjected to racist tweets and comments.

The original person on Twitter later tweeted, “Alright I deleted #that tweet I tweeted it for fun but people took it seriously and decided to be racist.”

Ramakrishnan has faced racism from Disney gatekeepers since 2023, when she first said in an interview that playing Rapunzel would be a dream role for her. She addressed the initial controversy — born out of her simply having the audacity to share something she would love to achieve — on Twitter.

The actress shared the song “I’ve Got a Dream” from “Tangled” and tweeted, “Anyway… the enthusiastic fans who are upset because I mentioned I have a dream role obviously didn't listen to the soundtrack enough.”

“Not feeling guilty about expressing my dream and hoping for a chance to demonstrate my abilities,” Ramakrishnan added. “Until then, I'm still just living my life trying to learn how to crochet.”

Two months later, Disney fansite Disinsider reported the baseless rumor that not only was a live-action “Tangled” in the works, but that Florence Pugh was in contention for the lead role.

Vandanapu has not responded to the rumors nor the public response.