'Doctor Strange' News: Marvel Talks Ancient One Casting Issue
Over the past days, "Doctor Strange" has been under fire for casting Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One and recently, Marvel has responded to the allegations that the award-winning actress' casting is "whitewashed."
In a statement to Mashable, Marvel Studios said, "The Ancient One is a title that is not exclusively held by any one character, but rather a moniker passed down through time, and in this particular film the embodiment is Celtic."
According to Slash Film, Swinton herself made a statement about the decision to have her play the role. She said her script does not suggest that she should depict an Asian man so she never questioned the task at hand. She believes that all of the questions racing through a fan's mind should be answered once the movie launches.
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Finally, she iterated that there is a reasonable explanation behind the role. "There are very great reasons for us to feel very settled and confident with the decisions that were made," she explained.
Variety notes that the casting choice has actually been controversial ever since Swinton was announced for the role but the rage only became more intense when writer C. Robert Cargill made comments involving the Chinese market.
According to The New York Times, Cargill explained that acknowledging Tibet in the film would alienate a huge number of people who are supposed to hit big screens when the movie releases. Another issue that he mentioned is the possibility of the Chinese government questioning the presumed political aspect that the role is presenting.
Cargill fears that China, who is the second biggest box office in the world, would say, "Hey, you know one of the biggest film-watching countries in the world? We're not going to show your movie because you decided to get political," he said.
The outlet notes that despite the criticisms Marvel is receiving, the trailer did preserve some of Tibet's culture as temples and prayer wheels were all shown in the teaser.
"Doctor Strange" hits theaters on November 4, 2016.
