Well I suppose it is a good thing that they chose to cast Michelle Yeoh and not, you know, Kate Bosworth, but yeah. Asian !=Japanese.

Heh, I was reading the pasted paragraph and wondering why Michelle Yeoh would be a language problem, as her English is at least passable, but then I remembered there was the rest of the cast for her to try and communicate with....

I think Michelle's English is more than passable -- she's fluent.

Language problems on the set aside, I'm wondering what's the big difference between a Chinese actress playing a Japanese character and, say, a Spanish actress playing an Italian character?

Or a Welsh actress playing an Hispanic character.

Signed,
Took me a while after Mask of Zorro to realize Catherine Zeta-Jones was not Hispanic, despite the complete lack of appropriate accent.

I'm wondering what's the big difference between a Chinese actress playing a Japanese character and, say, a Spanish actress playing an Italian character?

I think the difference might be huge if you're Italian or Japanese.

I don't think there's any more virtue to casting Zhang than there would be to casting, say, Lucy Liu. But I don't know which meaning of Asian they're using. It just seems they're pleased with themselves for reasons I can't determine.

I think the difference might be huge if you're Italian or Japanese.

Is it? I mean, aren't European actors sometimes cast as other nationalities in European films? I can't think of any specific examples, however, so they may not be, but I thought I'd seen it done.

Of course, there's always casting an Englishman to play Gandhi, but as I recall, there was some huffing over that one.

I don't think there's any more virtue to casting Zhang than there would be to casting, say, Lucy Liu.

Nor do I, but I also don't see the crime in casting Liu given that it is an American production. Should I?

there's always casting an Englishman to play Gandhi, but as I recall, there was some huffing over that one.

I thought Kingsley was half Indian.

I thought Kingsley was half Indian.

That's what his IMDb Bio says.

I mean, aren't European actors sometimes cast as other nationalities in European films?

Probably. But when they cast Americans as Jamaicans (and I'm talking better accents than Kendra's) we get a little huffy -- we got good actors too, you know. (though Don Cheadle can be Bond -- don't get me wrong here)

I also don't see the crime in casting Liu given that it is an American production. Should I?

If it were a Japanese production, I still wouldn't think it a crime.

In the end, it is about the quality of what the cast produces. Which is precisely why I'm wondering why they're so proud of themselves. An American production of a book written by a gaijin -- and a pan-Asian cast is -- well, if they mean racially it's pragmatic. If they mean by nationality -- I think Japanese has some purist virtue, especially to the Japanese. Pan-Asian has little to none.

Movie could still suck.