Paddington: the acceptable immigrant?

Last Sunday, my family and I went to the cinema to watch the newest instalment of the Paddington franchise - Paddington in Peru - followed by an early tea at Pizza Express. So far, so wholesome.

Whilst waiting for our pizzas to arrive, my husband - only too well aware of my EDI-focused lens on popular culture - asked the question “what do you think The Unbearables would have made of the film?”.(He’s also into Dad jokes, hence consistently and purposefully calling my place of work anything other than The Unmistakables. Buffoon).

Anyway, my teenage girls eye-rolled as per usual, with the 8 year old boy already professing his love of ‘the one in the prison’ as a better film than ‘the one in Peru’.

Needless to say, throughout the film I was a little disappointed to see an overall lack of ‘good’ representation, by which I mean meaningful portrayals of people from underrepresented groups which are free of stereotypes. Sanjeev Bhaskar’s doctor role, for example, established an overt ‘Mind Your Language’ type Indian accent in the first film that would have been hard to discard for the third instalment; some may assert that losing one’s accent is part of assimilating vs preserving identity. There were a few Black nuns in the Home for Retired Bears. One could argue a few of the locals show elements of neurodiversity, but - much like Richard Curtis films - the sense is that London itself is overwhelmingly White and a bit posh. So far, so predictable.

But actually, scratching beneath the question of surface representation, Paddington in Peru can be applauded for reinforcing themes of inclusion: belonging, tolerance, kindness and celebrating difference. Paddington - the acceptable immigrant to many - arrived on a boat from Peru, where he’d been orphaned due to an earthquake. It’s almost as if the storyline was written based on today’s headlines. He was welcomed by some, spurned by others and the first two films certainly - yet subtly - teach audiences about empathy, acceptance and the value of diverse perspectives. 

In this third instalment, we see the London-based immigrant gain British citizenship, enabling him to legally travel back to his homeland to reconnect with his roots - thereby showcasing themes such as celebration of cultural heritage, in a way that is easy for younger audiences to understand. Moreover, (spoiler alert) it highlights the fact that immigrants often don’t choose to ‘go back to where they came from’ as their sense of self has evolved to encompass a myriad of cultural experiences gained from existing in multiple societies.

The fact that Paddington asks his chosen family, the Browns, if he can travel back to London with them - and later invites his tribe to visit - bestowing each bear with a different London station name - is utterly heartwarming. They even pay a trip to the prison so Paddington can introduce the OG villain - Hugh Grant - to his extended family, illustrating the importance of forgiveness. Hugh Grant may have started off as a baddie, but could he be a changed person following a stint in prison? Paddington is open to finding out versus holding grudges against people - and communities - who were not as open-minded as him, sort of reminding me of the older generations within my own family of immigrants.

Why is any of this important? 

Because as a consultancy we spend a lot of time talking to our client partners about on-screen representation and the importance of ensuring it is credible and authentic. But - as we always say - representation is literally the ‘cherry on top’. 

The important step in baking a Paddington-shaped cake is in ensuring the core ingredients are in the narratives and storylines to begin with. That way, the important messages around inclusion are communicated in a much more powerful way - going beyond surface representation to true inclusion. And I for one, take my hat off to the Paddington franchise for focusing on the things that really matter and finding ways to talk about DEI in an engaging and ‘acceptable’ way - both for children and their grown up people.

P.S. Paddington, as you may already know, visited the Queen for her Platinum Jubilee which was beautifully referenced in Paddington’s bedroom which featured a photograph of the event. Much like many immigrants of a certain generation (myself included), this raised another interesting point for me around how we can - if at all - make peace with our love of the Royal Family whilst knowing the devastating and ongoing impacts of The Empire. But that’s a piece for another time…