It caused quite a stir when it was announced that Scarlett Johansson (Captain America: Civil War) had been cast in the lead role of the live-action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell [the first picture from the film was released yesterday], which once again brought out the ugly side of Hollywood’s ‘whitewashing’ of Asian roles, similar to how the proposed Akira adaptation is set to do.
One person who is very unhappy about this is Johansson’s fellow MCU star Ming-Na Wen, who tweeted that she is a fan of the actor but is very against the whitewashing of Ghost in the Shell.
Nothing against Scarlett Johansson. In fact, I'm a big fan. But everything against this Whitewashing of Asian role.😒 https://t.co/VS6r6iish9
— Ming-Na Wen (@MingNa) April 14, 2016
It calls to mind George Takei’s petition for Akira to cast more American-Asian actors, who he says are always overlooked for roles.
What do you make of Wen’s comments? Let us know in the comments below.
Based on the internationally-acclaimed sci-fi property, “GHOST IN THE SHELL” follows the Major, a special ops, one-of-a-kind human-cyborg hybrid, who leads the elite task force Section 9. Devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, Section 9 is faced with an enemy whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka Robotic’s advancements in cyber technology.
Ghost in the Shell is being directed by Rupert Sanders (Snow White and the Huntsman), with Scarlett Johansson (Captain America: Civil War) leading a cast that includes Beat Takeshi Kitano (Battle Royale), Juliette Binoche (Chocolat), Michael Pitt (Hannibal), Pilou Asbaek (Lucy), Kaori Momoi (Memoirs of a Geisha), Chin Han (Independence Day: Resurgence), Danusia Samal (Tyrant), Lasarus Ratuere (Terra Nova), Yutaka Izumihara (Unbroken) and Tuwanda Manyimo (The Rover). The film is set for release on March 31st 2017.
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Originally published April 15, 2016. Updated March 2, 2020.
