Scarlett Johansson’s casting as the lead role of Major Motoko Kusanagi in the live action movie Ghost in the Shell, based on the comic series, has caused controversy and is being called the “whitewashing” of an “Asian role.”
Derision over Scarlett Johansson’s casting came most notably from Ming-Na Wen, who voiced Fa Mulan in Disney’s Mulan.
https://twitter.com/sarabeaarr/status/720631204555452419
Some employed the vintage Social Justice Warrior hashtag, #StopWhiteWashing.
Johansson, to be fair, has been cast in the Western adaptation of this iconic anime series.
The Ghost in the Shell franchise has been airing for more than 20 years — and has notably featured characters that resemble white Europeans, as evidenced by the clip below.
Motoko Kusanagi is the head of a counter-terrorist organization, operating in a destopic 21st-century Japan.
In anime, Motoko Kusanagi has been voice-acted through the years by Atsuko Tanaka and Maaya Sakamoto.
Ghost in the Shell is expected to hit theaters worldwide on March 31, 2017.
Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter @jeromeehudson.
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