The Verge, by Ross Miller
There was something a bit off about that Gods of Egypt trailer that hit last week, and not just for its weirdly obvious use green screen. The cast was virtually all white with just one person of color (who, it's worth noting, was only shown in the footage literally cowering), which is rather conspicuous for a movie based in ancient Egypt.
Today, director Alex Proyas (I, Robot) acknowledged the lack of diversity in a statement, according to Variety. "The process of casting a movie has many complicated variables," he said, "but it is clear that our casting choices should have been more diverse. I sincerely apologize to those who are offended by the decisions we made." Lionsgate, the studio behind Gods of Egypt, echoed the sentiment with its own statement, which said "In this instance we failed to live up to our own standards of sensitivity and diversity, for which we sincerely apologize... We have, can and will continue to do better."
It's a positive sentiment — certainly better than the more flippant remarks Ridley Scott gave in response to similar criticisms of Exodus: Gods and Kings last year — but it doesn't change the film itself, which is already filmed and set to hit theaters in February. Maybe, however, the studio can apply the lessons here to its upcoming adaptation of Naruto.
via www.theverge.com
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