“Martian” Whitewashes Asian Roles
“The Martian” has been criticized by the Media Action Network for Asian-Americans for ‘white-washing’ Asian roles in his hit adventure “The Martian.” The film, which is based on the bestselling novel by Andy Weir, features a diverse set of characters, two of which are Asian yet are played by white and black actors on screen. “This feelgood movie, which has attracted Oscar buzz, shouldn’t get any awards for casting,†said Guy A0ki, MANAA founding president, in an open letter released on Thursday. The anger focuses on the character of Mindy Park, who is described as Korean-American in the book and played by white actor Mackenzie Davis, and Dr Venkat Kapoor, an Asian-Indian character who is a Hindu yet embodied by black actor Chiwetel Ejiofor and renamed Vincent.
