'Ghost in the Shell' producer defends Scarlett Johansson casting, says story is 'international'

Paramount

When the first image of Scarlett Johansson in "Ghost in the Shell" was released in April, people didn't hold back in expressing how displeased they were that Hollywood once again cast a white actor to play a non-white character.

"Ghost in the Shell" is a live-action adaptation of Masamune Shirow’s classic manga series that follows Major Motoko Kusanagi — Johansson's character who is apparently only called "the Major" — who is the leader of the fictional counter-cyberterrorist organization Public Security Section 9 in mid-21st century Japan.

The anger against the whitewashing swelled to even greater heights when a report said Paramount tried to make Johansson look more Asian with visual effects, though the studio claims that test was only performed on a "background actor."

After nearly three months, the team behind "Ghost in the Shell" is responding to the larger controversy.

"I think everybody is going to end up being really happy with it," Steven Paul, a producer on the film, told Buzzfeed. "They’re going to be very, very happy with it when they see what we’ve actually done with it, and I don’t think anybody’s going to be disappointed."

People, like comic book writer Jon Tsuei, say the story of "Ghost in the Shell" is inherently a Japanese one, but Paul protests that idea, telling Buzzfeed it's a more international story.

Paul added that they have paid "great respect" to the manga and that 'Ghost in the Shell' creator Shirow and Kodansha — the company that first published the manga — have been supportive and involved in the making of the film.

"We’ve been very, very careful. Obviously, there’s some new imagination, as well," he said. "I mean, like anything, when you’re making a movie, you’ve gotta bring your own."

You can read the full interview with Paul over at BuzzFeed.

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