"Ghost in the Shell" is a futuristic sci-fi story in which a law-enforcement task force, led by Scarlett Johansson's character, does battle with criminal hackers. It's also an anime adaptation by Paramount/Dreamworks.
Earlier this year, the production draw criticisms from fans who were upset that Johansson was cast as the Major, also known as Motoko Kusanagi in the anime movie and TV series. The Wrap said that the reason behind this is about Asian characters being whitewashed with white actors, and its considered to be something in a bad light because the said anime is well-loved.
The casting also sparked fierce debate on social media across the Western world. However, in the home of the manga and anime cult classic, the reaction of the fans was a surprise, as more Japanese had already assumed that the lead role in a Hollywood version of the story would definitely go to a white actress.
"Looking at her career so far, I think Scarlett Johansson is well cast," Sam Yoshiba, director of the international business division at Kodansha's Tokyo headquarters, said. "She has the cyberpunk feel. And we never imagined it would be a Japanese actress in the first place."
He added: "This is a chance for a Japanese property to be seen around the world."
A longtime manga fan Tetsuya Kataoka expressed, "If you want a Japanese cast, then a Japanese company should make the film in Japan,"
Meanwhile, The Hollywood Reporter said a few Japanese commentators on Twitter who suggested that not too much attention should be paid to the physical appearance of the actress because the dominant themes in "Ghost in the Shell" are the nature of identity and cyborgs used to host cyber-brains.
"There's been a lot of criticism from foreign fans about the casting of Scarlett Johansson as Motoko Kusanagi in the movie adaptation of Ghost in the Shell," wrote @janyojanyo.
"It's about artificial bodies, so you may as well think of it as her using a white cyborg. The manga and anime have differences anyway. It's still better than them casting Rinko Kikuchi just because she can speak English."
"Ghost in the Shell" is directed by "Snow White and the Hunstman" director Rupert Sanders and will be released in theaters in 2017.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
