Controversial new Star Wars poster from China
There is no doubt that Star Wars: The Force Awakens has a diverse cast, but China’s new poster for the movie is raising a few eyebrows.
The poster is similar in style to the US version, but take a look at them both (below) and you will notice that John Boyega has been shrunk by over 50% and is barely visible. Strangely, Chewbacca is missing altogether and characters like Han Solo, Leia and BB-8 have increased in size.
But is diminishing Boyega’s character Finn a conscious decision from China? Not long ago, during the Sony Pictures e-mail hack, it was revealed that executives had doubts over how The Equalizer, starring Denzel Washington, would perform internationally. One of the film’s producers e-mailed Sony chairman Michael Lynton, saying “I believe that the international motion picture audience is racist — in general pictures with an African American lead don’t play well overseas.”
Hollywood culture may be changing, but unfortunately racism is still an issue internationally, and the new Chinese Star Wars poster certainly makes you wonder…