Name: Nguyễn Thùy Dương

Class: VH1

29/08/2017

The idea that its good business is a myth’ – why Hollywood

whitewashing has become toxic

Steve Rose
Film and television used to be able to get away with whitewashing, but when the
word is associated with a project these days it tends to stick. It comes up at every
press conference, it generates a cloud of Twitter memes. The signs point to it
starting to make an impression on the people who make movies. On Monday, in
what could be a pivotal development, British actor Ed Skrein announced he would
be stepping down from his role in Hellboy, a reboot of the comic-book franchise,
just days after his casting had been announced.

In the comic books, Skrein’s would-be character, Ben Daimio, was half-Japanese,
so his casting was met with protest, particularly from Asian-Americans. Skrein
listened to them. “It is clear that representing this character in a culturally accurate
way holds significance for people, and that to neglect this responsibility would
continue a worrying tendency to obscure ethnic minority stories and voices in the
arts,” Skrein wrote on Twitter. His decision has been applauded by many.

The “worrying tendency” Skrein references has been standard Hollywood practice
since the silent era, when stars such as Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino
would play romantic Arabs. But it has come under fresh scrutiny through high-
profile cases including sci-fi film Ghost in the Shell, in which Scarlett Johansson
played a “Japanese” cyborg in a Hollywoodised adaptation of a Japanese manga
and anime, and Marvel movie Doctor Strange. The latter starred Tilda Swinton as a
Himalayan mystic, who was an Asian man in the original comic books. There’s
also Emma Stone’s “Chinese-Hawaiian” character in Aloha. The usual response
from the studios to whitewashing accusations has been simply to tough it out and
limit the spread of the stain by denial.

Instead – and perhaps this was playing on Skrein’s mind – it is now the actors who
regularly find themselves having to defend the practice. Both Johansson and
Swinton had to field questions from the press about whitewashing and were often
forced into awkward responses. “She is essentially identity-less,” Johansson said of
her Ghost in the Shell heroine. “I would never attempt to play a person of a
 Name: Nguyễn Thùy Dương
Class: VH1

different race, obviously.” Swinton, meanwhile, took the position that her playing
Doctor Strange’s Ancient One was actually less offensive than an Asian man
playing him – which would have amounted to ethnic stereotyping.

As actor William Yu posted in response to Skrein’s original casting in Hellboy:

“With every instance of whitewashing, an (Asian-American) is subliminally told
that they are not worth attention, not worth a place in this society.” It is not just
about whitewashing characters; it is also about whitewashing certain peoples’
culture and history by appropriating it for a movie and then erasing the non-white
presence. That was the problem with Ghost in the Shell and many other recent
offerings, including Netflix’s adaptation of Marvel’s Iron Fist – a white superhero
who is better versed in Asian philosophy and martial arts than actual Asians. It
amounts to the same thing: a way to include white people at the expense of non-
white ones.

The industry excuse for whitewashing is often that bankable star names are needed
to make a project commercially viable. Yet few of these examples have been hits.
Ghost in the Shell was a box-office flop and its producers acknowledged that “the
conversation regarding casting impacted the reviews”. Death Note and Iron Fist
were not critical or commercial successes, either. The idea that whitewashing is
good business is a myth, says Chow: “That cover can only last so long. Once you
realise all these movies, going back to The Last Airbender, Aloha, Prince of
Persia ... financially, they have been failures. It is a lesson that should have been
learned 10 years ago.”

Skrein’s departure from Hellboy deserves applause, but actors should not have to
be making these decisions. The onus should be on those making the movie and
casting the characters. Hellboy might have rubbed out its stain by pledging to cast
an Asian actor instead of Skrein, but it is still being made by the same people who
thought nothing of whitewashing in the first place.

(Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/aug/29/the-idea-

that-its-good-business-is-a-myth-why-hollywood-whitewashing-has-become-
toxic )
 Name: Nguyễn Thùy Dương
Class: VH1

Summary

Steve Rose discusses the Hollywood whitewashing has grown poisonous in

the article from the Guardian.Firstly, he talks about Ed Skrein, a British actor,
who announced his departure from boy, a revival of the comic-book
franchise, since his casting drew criticism, especially from Asian Americans.
Skrein claimed that appropriately portraying ethnic minority characters is
critical for people's relevance and that failing to do so will continue to
conceal their voices in the arts. This "worrying tendency" has been a standard
Hollywood practice since the silent period but it has recently come under fire
in high-profile incidents such as Ghost in the Shell and Doctor Strange.
Typically, studios reply to charges of whitewashing with denial. For example,
actors like Johansson and Tom Swinton have been accused of whitewashing,
including Ghost in the Shell and Doctor Strange’s Ancient One, respectively.
The practice involves appropriating certain people's culture and history for a
film and then hiding the presence of non-white individuals. The industry's
reason for whitewashing is frequently that a film needs bankable big names
to be economically successful. However, few of these cases have been
successful, and the idea that whitewashing is profitable is fiction. Skrein's
resignation from Hellboy is well-deserved, but the onus should be on those
who make the film and cast the characters. Hellboy may have wiped away its
mark by promising to hire an Asian actor in lieu of Skrein,but it was still
made by the same people who thought nothing of whitewashing in the first
place.
 Name: Nguyễn Thùy Dương
Class: VH1

Reflection

The article provides me with viewpoints about the actors playing different
races and ethnicities. I enrich my knowledge about this topic because it is
strange and hard to find documents and give evidence to support my idea.
None of the content surprised me because I have the same opinions as the
author. For me, the key to the movie lies in the producer and director as they
decide to choose actors, scenery, frame shots, and the way to promote and
advertise their film. Choosing the right actors and plot is essential to making
a successful movie, especially films with ethnicity and race. If not, actors will
face racism and discrimination in their lifetimes. For example, Halle Bailey
received wave after wave of racist critics complaining due to ruining their
childhood about Ariel with fair skin, and red hair.

Overall, this source is still informative, I think playing different races or

ethnicities is ethical since casting a black actor was to correct the course of
whitewashing in Hollywood’s history and diversify the image of history in
the current and future generations.