The Scarlett Johansson-starring Ghost in the Shell movie may already be well into production (filming started back in February), but the movie had just added a fairly high profile new name to its cast. According to The Hollywood Reporter, model-turned-actress Rila Fukushima has joined the movie in an unspecified role. Most fans will recognize Fukushima as Katana from the Arrow TV series, or perhaps from her role as Hugh Jackman’s sidekick Yukio in The Wolverine. Fukushima joins other supporting cast members Pilou Asbaek (Lucy), Michael Pitt (Funny Games), Juliette Binoche (The English Patient), Kaori Momoi (Memoirs of a Geisha) and Takeshi Kitano (too many Japanese classics to name).
With Fukushima’s casting coming so late in the production of Ghost in the Shell, many will strictly look at it as an attempt to bolster the movie’s Japanese cast. Ghost in the Shell has been accused of whitewashing for casting Johansson in a property previously populated exclusively by Japanese characters, and leaked reports that Paramount tested effects that would make white actors look more Asian didn’t help matters. The fact that the Japanese owners of Ghost in the Shell are all for Johansson’s casting hasn’t really calmed the fires.
So yeah, this continues to be a tough situation. The addition of another Japanese cast member is certainly welcome, but people will undoubtedly question why Paramount didn’t cast Fukushima or another Japanese star in the lead to begin with. That said, as long as she’s given a significant role, Fukushima can’t help but make the movie better, as she’s a memorable presence and fairly serious badass.
Considering all the online gnashing of teeth, what are your current feelings about Ghost in the Shell? Given the newly-born possibility of a Scarlett Johansson/Rila Fukushima sword fight showdown, I remain intrigued enough to give it a chance. Ghost in the Shell hits theaters March 31, 2017.
(Via The Hollywood Reporter)
