Should be able to play any person, tree, animal: Scarlett Johansson on casting

Team Udayavani, Jul 14, 2019, 12:58 PM IST

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New York: Scarlett Johansson says political correctness may be a trend in show business, but she should be free to explore a wide range of characters as a performing artiste.

The actor, who was last year at the centre of controversy over her casting as a transgender man in drama “Rub and Tug”, said art should not be bound by restrictions.

“You know, as an actor I should be able to play any person, or any tree, or any animal, because that’s my job and the requirements of my job…

“I feel like (political correctness is) a trend in my business and it needs to happen for various social reasons, yet there are times it does get uncomfortable when it affects the art because I feel art should be free of restrictions,” she told As If magazine.

Johansson went on to say that the society would be more in sync if people were allowed to express themselves freely.

“I think society would be more connected if we just allowed others to have their own feelings and not expect everyone to feel the way we do,” she said.

Last July, Johansson dropped out of Rupert Sanders’ “Rub and Tug”, in which she was attached to portray real life figure Dante Tex Gill, gangster and massage parlour owner, following backlash from the LGBT community.

“In light of recent ethical questions surrounding my casting as Dante Tex Gill, I have decided to respectfully withdraw my participation in the project,” she said in a statement then.

Sanders’ previous film “Ghost in the Shell” (2017), starring Johansson as a Japanese manga character, had also received a lot of backlash for casting a Caucasian actor for the role. The film was accused of racism and whitewashing.