Scarlett Johansson News: Actress' Casting for 'Ghost in the Shell' Receives Criticism from Asian Stars
Ever since it was announced that Scarlett Johansson has been cast to star in "Ghost in the Shell," many of her movie-going fans were ecstatic. However, her casting has recently received backlash as some believe that an Asian star should have been chosen for the role.
According to The Verge, fans started giving out their ideas about the issue when Johnansson's photo as Major Motoko Kusanagi was released. The issue has sparked debates as to whether Hollywood is whitewashing the cast of Asian, specifically Japanese, original stories.
While she is definitely a strong face for the masses in terms of gaining viewership, the main object of criticism is the storyline that talks about a Japanese character. The TIME Magazine notes that the photo has gained the attention of Asian stars including Ming-Na Wen and Constance Wu.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
Wen recently took to Twitter and spoke up about the controversy. "Nothing against Scarlett Johansson. In fact, I'm a big fan. But everything against this Whitewashing of Asian role," she wrote.
The magazine also reports that a petition has been filed against the movie derived from Japanese manga. While the petition was filed last year, the debates only became more intense over the past weeks as Asians have seen how Johansson will appear in the live-action adaptation.
Wu has also been vocal about her ideas on the topic. "It's like way to reduce race to mere phys appearance as opposed to say culture, social experience, identity, history," she tweeted.
According to Inquisitr, Hollywood has been putting white actors in roles meant for Asians and other races over the past years. On the other hand, there are also many experts who believe that Johahnsson's casting is reasonable enough since she has the proper skills to execute scenes that need to be done to pull of the role of a martial arts expert.
So far, Johansson has not commented on the debates yet.
