Director dismisses row over Damon
Print Edition
ACCLAIMED Chinese director Zhang Yimou has responded to criticism from an Asian-American actress over the casting of “white man” Matt Damon as his movie’s lead, saying the role was never conceived for a Chinese actor.
Damon of the “Bourne” franchise will star later this year in the US$150 million Chinese-Hollywood fantasy movie “The Great Wall,” an English-language movie set in China involving menacing supernatural monsters.
Constance Wu, who stars in a US comedy series centered on immigrants called “Fresh Off the Boat,” said on Twitter last week: “We have to stop perpetuating the racist myth that a only (sic) white man can save the world.”
“Our heroes don’t look like Matt Damon,” her post read, listing alternatives such as Pakistani schoolgirl-turned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi and ex-South African president and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela.
“The Great Wall” is the first English-language movie by Zhang, the director of the romantic kung fu drama “House of Flying Daggers,” and the opulent opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
“For the first time, a film deeply rooted in Chinese culture, with one of the largest Chinese casts ever assembled, is being made at tent pole scale for a world audience. I believe that is a trend that should be embraced by our industry,” Zhang said in a statement posted on Entertainment Weekly’s website.
“Our film is not about the construction of the Great Wall. Matt Damon is not playing a role that was originally conceived for a Chinese actor. The arrival of his character in our story is an important plot point,” he said. Zhang said actors portraying the movie’s other four “major heroes” are Chinese.
The casting of Damon hasn’t sparked any controversy in China, where producers are increasingly entering into co-productions with American and other movie makers to improve their filmmaking techniques. China is also pushing for Chinese films to be global hits. Hollywood has been drawn to China by its deep-pocketed financiers and its box office that is now the world’s second biggest.
“The Great Wall” is due for December release in China.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
