A Strange Choice for Haydée's Character?

I seriously need to get this off my chest about the 2024 Count of Monte Cristo adaptation because I can’t be the only one frustrated by this. So, Haydée in the book is clearly Albanian. She’s the daughter of Ali Pasha, who ruled over a region that’s now part of Greece but was under the Ottoman Empire at the time. Sure, sometimes she’s referred to as “Greek” in the book because of the area, but it’s clearly stated that Ali Pasha is Albanian. Haydée’s entire identity is tied to her Albanian heritage, and that’s a key part of her backstory.

Now, cut to the movie, and what do we get? Haydée speaking Romanian. Why? Just… why? Yeah, I get that the actress is half Romanian, but come on, that’s no excuse to completely throw out her entire background. If you’re going to name-drop a historical figure like Ali Pasha and make her Albanian in the source material, why ignore that later? Why even bother mentioning her origins if you’re just going to toss them aside for convenience?

Romanian is a completely different language from Albanian and Greek. They’re not even remotely related! So why, in 2024, are we making Haydée speak Romanian, which has no historical or linguistic connection to her? This just feels like an incredibly lazy decision. If the filmmakers didn’t want to get into Albanian or Greek, fine, but why go with Romanian? It’s completely random and makes no sense within the context of the story. It’s not even about the actress being Romanian—this is about respecting the character's origins and the story’s integrity.

It’s frustrating because Haydée’s heritage isn’t just a side note. It’s part of her character arc, her struggle, her identity. To ignore that is not just a missed opportunity, it’s disrespectful. If you’re adapting a classic like The Count of Monte Cristo, at least try to stay true to the character's roots! This kind of laziness with something so central to Haydée’s identity is just baffling.