Constance Wu on 'whitewashing': 'Our heroes don't look like Matt Damon'

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN

Updated 11:00 PM ET, Sun July 31, 2016

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Advocacy groups have accused the sci-fi film "Annihilation" of "whitewashing" characters like Natalie Portman's Lena who is described as being of Asian heritage in the sequel to the novel the movie is based on.

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Some fans were not happy with the casting of non-Asian actors in the lead roles of the Netflix film "Death Note." The movie is an adaptation of a Japanese manga of the same name. As you'll see from this gallery, it's not the first time such casting has stirred controversy.

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

"Ghost in the Shell" is another live action adaptation of a Japanese project which was accused of "whitewashing" with its casting of Scarlett Johansson as the lead character.

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Marvel's "Iron Fist" series on Netflix also caught heat for having "Game Of Thrones" actor Finn Jones star as a martial arts expert.

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Matt Damon was put as the lead in Zhang Yimou's English-language debut "The Great Wall," set in ancient China. The choice drew criticism, most prominently from 'Fresh Off The Boat' star Constance Wu.

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

The makers of 2016's "Gods of Egypt" came under fire for showcasing a mostly white cast that includes Danish actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, left, and Australian actor Brenton Thwaites alongside Scotsman Gerard Butler. Amid intense criticism, director Alex Proyas issued an apology, saying, "it is clear that our casting choices should have been more diverse."

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Writer-director Cameron Crowe cast Emma Stone as a Hawaiian woman who is one-quarter Chinese in his movie "Aloha." Crowe apologized after many criticized the casting choice, although he said Stone's character was based on a real-life redhead who was part Asian.

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Some fans were less than thrilled when actress Rooney Mara was cast as Tiger Lily in "Pan," a planned live-action adaptation of "Peter Pan." The character is Native American, and Mara, best known for starring in "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," is reportedly of Irish descent. According to Variety, "The world (of 'Pan') being created is multi-racial/international -- and a very different character than previously imagined."

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Johnny Depp played Native American sidekick Tonto in the 2013 film "The Lone Ranger." He was criticized <a href="http://gawker.com/5906868/johnny-depps-tonto-is-based-on-a-white-mans-painting-of-an-imaginary-native-american" target="_blank">as soon as the image appeared.</a>

Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Johnny Depp played Native American sidekick Tonto in the 2013 film "The Lone Ranger." He was criticized as soon as the image appeared.

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Ben Affleck played a real-life Hispanic character, Tony Mendez, in the Academy Award-winning 2012 film "Argo."

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Jim Sturgess played Hae-Joo Chang in "Cloud Atlas" in 2012. Sturgess wasn't the only performer to go against ethnic type in "Cloud Atlas," in which actors played several roles.

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Jake Gyllenhaal played Dastan in "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" in 2010. The<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/Movies/06/18/color.blind.casting/"> choice left many fans unhappy</a>.

Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Jake Gyllenhaal played Dastan in "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" in 2010. The choice left many fans unhappy.

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Photos: White actors cast as ethnic characters

Nicola Peltz and Jackson Rathbone starred as Katara and Sokka in "The Last Airbender." Their casting, along with that of star Noah Ringer as Aang, caused an outcry over the Asian-inspired movie. The Media Action Network for Asian-Americans urged a boycott upon its release in 2010.

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Canadian actor Justin Chatwin starred as Goku in "Dragonball: Evolution" in 2009.

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Josh Hartnett played Eben Oleson in the 2007 film "30 Days of Night." In the comic book the film is based on, the character is an Alaskan sheriff of Inuit descent.

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Angelina Jolie darkened her skin slightly to portray journalist Mariane Pearl in the 2007 film "A Mighty Heart." The French-born Pearl is of mixed heritage.

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Peter Sellers darkened his skin to play Hrundi V. Bakshi in the 1968 movie "The Party."

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Elizabeth Taylor played the Queen of the Nile in the 1963 film "Cleopatra," which co-starred her real-life love Richard Burton. There was backlash in 2010 when it was announced that Angelina Jolie had been cast in a planned film based on the book "Cleopatra: A Life."

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Natalie Wood played Maria, a Puerto Rican character, in the 1961 musical film "West Side Story."

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Charlton Heston played a Mexican official, Miguel Vargas, in the 1958 noir film "Touch of Evil."

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Marlon Brando was cast as Sakini, a local from Okinawa, in the 1956 comedy "The Teahouse of the August Moon."

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John Wayne, at right with John Hoyt and Thomas Gomez, played Genghis Khan in "The Conqueror" in 1956.

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Russian-born Yul Brynner plays the King of Siam in the 1956 musical "The King and I."

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Katharine Hepburn plays an Asian woman, Jade Tan, in the 1944 film "Dragon Seed."

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Story highlights

'Fresh Off the Boat' star Constance Wu takes on Hollywood 'whitewashing' and 'hero-bias'
On Twitter, she wrote a passionate letter about why films like 'The Great Wall' perpetuate a 'racist myth'

(CNN)"Fresh Off the Boat" star Constance Wu says she is sick of Hollywood "whitewashing" heroism.

In a letter posted to her Twitter account Friday, Wu said films like Matt Damon's forthcoming "The Great Wall," in which the star plays a warrior defending the landmark against ancient Chinese monsters, add to a problem that's existed for too long in the industry.

Can we all at least agree that hero-bias & "but it's really hard to finance" are no longer excuses for racism? TRY pic.twitter.com/mvNet5PrtH
— Constance Wu (@ConstanceWu) July 29, 2016

"We have to stop perpetuating the racist myth that a (sic) only white man can save the world," she wrote. "It's not based in actual fact. Our heroes don't look like Matt Damon. They look like Malala. Ghandi. Mandela. Your big sister when she stood up for you to those bullies that one time."

Wu said typical reasons given for whitewashing films -- like the lack of bankable diverse stars and the need to appease overseas investors -- are no longer valid.

"Can we all at least agree that hero-bias & 'but it's really hard to finance' are no longer excuses for racism?" she wrote in the tweet accompanying the long note. "TRY."

Y'all sayin that im blaming ppl didnt read. It's NOT abt blame, it's abt awareness. That way we dont get in tired fights abt good intentions
— Constance Wu (@ConstanceWu) July 29, 2016

The Taiwanese-American actress has earned critical praise for her role as Jessica Huang on ABC's "Fresh Off the Boat."

In her letter, she pleaded for Hollywood to take the risk of casting actors of color as film leads.

"If nothing else, you'd get some mad respect (which is WAY more valuable than money)," she wrote.

For the millionth time it's NOT abt blame. Not blaming Damon, the studio, the Chinese financiers. It's not about blame, It's about AWARENESS
— Constance Wu (@ConstanceWu) July 30, 2016

Wu wrote that she wasn't trying to apportion blame.

"Not blaming Damon, the studio, the Chinese financiers," she wrote in a followup tweet. "It's not about blame, it's about AWARENESS."

Photos: Asian American actors

John Cho, who plays Hikaru Sulu in the rebooted "Star Trek" movies, featured in the recent #StarringJohnCho online campaign. The campaign was launched by digital strategist William Yu to highlight "the lack of representation of Asian-Americans in media."

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Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller in "Elementary." Liu's also known for her roles in "Kill Bill," "Charlie's Angels," and "Ally McBeal."

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Korean-American actor Ki Hong Lee plays Minho in the 2014 movie "The Maze Runner." He also plays Dong Nguyen in the Netflix comedy "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt."

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Harry Shum Jr., born in Costa Rica, starred as Mike Chang in FOX's "Glee." He currently plays Magnus Bane in ABC's "Shadowhunters."

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Ming-Na Wen stars as Agent May in "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." Wen was the voice of Disney's "Mulan" and had a recurring role on "Two and a Half Men."

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Steven Yeun plays Glenn Rhee in AMC's "The Walking Dead." Fans of the show have been left wondering about his character's fate after the sixth season's cliffhanger finale.

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Kal Penn starred in the "Harold &amp; Kumar" movie series and TV's "How I Met Your Mother." He also served as associate director for the White House's Office of Public Engagement.

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Kal Penn starred in the "Harold & Kumar" movie series and TV's "How I Met Your Mother." He also served as associate director for the White House's Office of Public Engagement.

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Constance Wu stars in ABC's "Fresh off the Boat." You may also have seen her in the TV series "Eastsiders."

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Randall Park is a comedian, actor and writer. He plays Louis Huang in ABC's "Fresh Off the Boat," about an immigrant family that moves from Washington's Chinatown to Orlando in the 1990s.

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Vincent Rodriguez III is a New York-based Filipino-American actor who co-stars in the CW comedy "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend."

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George Takei played Hikaru Sulu in the original "Star Trek" series.

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Brandon Lee, the son of actor and martial arts legend Bruce Lee, starred in the 1994 movie "The Crow." He died in an on-set accident during the filming of the movie.

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