Zoe Saldana backs Michael B. Jordan on Fantastic Four casting

Zoe Saldana has praised actor Michael B. Jordan for taking aim at Internet "trolls" who criticized his casting in Fantastic Four, pointing out that white actors have portrayed people of different races for years.

The Fruitvale Station star has become a target of racially-motivated attacks from movie fans who hate the idea of an African-American playing the Fantastic Four's leader Johnny Storm.

But in an essay for Entertainment Weekly, Jordan addressed the controversy and called out the critics, stating, "To the trolls on the Internet, I want to say: 'Get your head out of the computer. Go outside and walk around. Look at the people walking next to you. Look at your friends' friends and who they're interacting with. And just understand this is the world we live in. It's OK to like it.'"

And Saldana, who is Dominican and Puerto Rican, has shown her support for Jordan, pointing out that white actors have been cast as people of color in biopics for years.

In a post on her Facebook page, Saldana writes, "Bravo!!! Inspired by Michael's essay. Thank you for speaking up. If we question why Michael has been cast to play the Human Torch in Fantastic Four then we must also question why Elizabeth Taylor played Cleopatra, why Angelina Jolie played Mariane Pearl in a Mighty Heart, why Laurence Olivier played Othello, Burt Lancaster in Apache, and the list goes on....and on.... And on... Let's not throw rocks when we all live in glass houses."

Saldana has been at the center of a similar controversy, after she was cast as African-American jazz legend Nina Simone in an upcoming biopic.

After photographs of the Avatar actress as Simone in full dark make-up were released, fans of the singer, including the late musician's daughter, Simone Kelly, slammed Saldana's casting, insisting the actress was not black enough for the part.