Scarlett Johansson has reunited with her future ex-husband — but probably just for a photo op.
The “Ghost In The Shell” actress was spotted with ex Romain Dauriac at the Singular Object Art Opening Cocktail Reception in New York on Wednesday. It’s almost enough to make you forget about their nasty custody battle. But not quite.
This show of solidarity could very well be an attempt to distract from the film’s disappointing box office sales: According to Lainey Gossip, “Ghost” is on track to lose at least $60 million, and as much as $100 million. Part of the reason for the film’s major flop is likely its casual approach to whitewashing. Spoilers ahead.
The 32-year-old told Good Morning America that her character was essentially identity-less. “Any question of my casting will hopefully be answered when they see the film,” she said. Turns out, the film tried to explain away the whitewashing, as you do. According to Hollywood Reporter, Johansson’s character is told that she is a refugee named Mira Killian whose brain was rescued from a terrorist attack and put into a cybernetic body; her character later discovers that she’s a Japanese runaway named Motoko Kusangi in a cybernetic body. So while Johansson isn’t Japanese, her character’s brain is. Which is apparently the best they could do.
The Hollywood Reporter went on to interview four Japanese actresses about the film for a frank conversation about cultural authenticity. “It was much harder to watch than I thought it was gonna be,” Keiko Agena shares.
“Major’s backstory is white people trying to justify the casting,” Ai Yoshihara says. Actress Atsuko Okatsu agrees. “It’s 2017 and I don’t know why these representation issues are still happening. It’s overwhelming.”
Johansson has plenty of reason to be trying to change the conversation. But truly? She shouldn’t have accepted the gig in the first place — and Hollywood should have never offered it to her.
