Anime fans around the globe are crying foul Dreamwork's live-action Ghost in the Shell project. Their outrage stems from the fact that an anime adaptation only has one Asian actor listed among the main cast. As the lead of the film, fan ire is naturally being focused on Scarlett Johansson, who plays Section 9 leader, Motoko Kusanagi. Sam Yoshiba, director of the international business division at Kodnasha, told The Hollywood Reporter---
"Looking at her career so far, I think Scarlett Johansson is well-cast. She has the cyberpunk feel. And we never imagined it would be a Japanese actress in the first place. This is a chance for a Japanese property to be seen around the world." Yoshiba recently visited the film's set in New Zealand and remarked that he was , "he was impressed by the respect being shown for the source material."
It should be clear that this is the publisher and not the creator (Masamune Shirow) making this statement. It's essentially the equivalent of Marvel or DC Comics endorsing something created by one of their writers or artists. Still, there doesn't seem to be any controversy over in Japan. According to Kotaku, residents simply don't plan to see the movie.
Ghost in the Shell is an upcoming, cyberpunk sci-fi film from Dreamworks and Paramount Pictures. Rupert Sanders directs from a script written by Jamie Moss and Jonathan Herman. Scarlett Johansson stars as Motoko Kusanagi. Pilou Asbæk plays her right-hand man, Batou. Beat Takeshi plays their boss, Lt. Col. Daisuke Aramaki. Michael Pitt will play the villain of the film, The Laughing Man.
Ghost in the Shell opens in US theaters on March 31, 2017.