Three points. First, I think your formulation that even if a new character is created or even a new franchise that people will still see it as forced or pandering is incorrect. Sure, there will be always be the anti-pc-sjw's-are-everywhere reactionaries that will always make noise (btw sjw's annoy me as much as any civilized person, I'm just not preoccupied with them), but the culture at large is accepting of new characters, (Spawn, Ripely, Sara Conner were never accused of this in a mass market way). Second, what is "pandering"? Was Magic Mike "pandering" to women? Was Rambo "pandering" to men? Were the blaxploitation movies "pandering" to blacks? This type of marketing/targeting is accepted (widely) by the culture and does not cause the kind of ire you discuss. Thirdly, and most importantly, the real heart of the issue here is that when people go to the movies they want to be entertained, not preached to. The recent casting moves (most notably Ghostbusters) are clearly (and ham-fistedly) attempts by Hollywood elites to inculcate certain values into the culture (a la Will and Grace). Even for the most open minded and tolerant individuals (like myself) who don't have a bigoted bone in our bodies, this should be offensive. Things like this far from being empowering, come off as lame, preachy, and ultimately condescending. Shoehorning "diverse" characters into existing franchises to make political statements will always be seen by the culture at large for what it really is, insufferable.