Listen to Represent:
On this episode of Represent, Aisha Harris talks to Inkoo Kang of MTV News and Alex Jung of Vulture about Scarlett Johansson’s casting as The Major in Ghost in the Shell and the wider issue of Asian representation in Hollywood. But first, in our second installment of “Recognize,” producer Veralyn Williams makes the case for Big Little Lies, its inclusion of people of color where possible, and Nicole Kidman’s powerful performance as a domestic violence victim.
Check out:
- How Nicole Kidman, David E. Kelley, and others prepared for Big Little Lies’ domestic violence storyline
- “A Beginner’s Guide to the Ghost in the Shell Universe”
- The 1995 anime movie Ghost in the Shell
- In Slate, Marissa Martinelli breaks down the most common strategies for defending whitewashing in Hollywood—and why they don’t work
- The director of the original Ghost in the Shell on Scarlett Johansson’s casting in the remake: “If that’s not allowed, then Darth Vader probably shouldn’t speak English, either.”
- Aisha’s piece on why the plot twist in the Ghost in the Shell remake makes the whitewashing even worse
- Jonathan L. Fischer’s review of Iron Fist in Slate
- Iron Fist star Jessica Henwick says she has “lived and breathed” whitewashing
- “Meet Lewis Tan, the Asian-American Actor Who Could Have Been Iron Fist” in Vulture
Pluses and Deltas for this week:
( + ) Inkoo is loving the NBC sitcom Superstore, especially Nico Santos as Mateo, who is navigating being an undocumented worker. Alex humble-brags about his interview with Scandal’s Joe Morton and looks forward to a possible television reboot of the 1984 film Brother From Another Planet. And Aisha professes her love for Grace and Frankie, with a special shout-out for Season 4.
( ∆ ) Everyone agrees: It’s Ghost in the Shell.
Don’t miss Represent live at the Tribeca Film Festival
For the first time ever, Slate will be bringing two live shows to the Tribeca Film Festival: Represent with Aisha Harris on April 24 at 6:45 p.m. and Trumpcast on April 30 at 8:15 p.m. For more information, and tickets, visit slate.com/live.
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Producer: Veralyn Williams
Social media: Marissa Martinelli
