Aloha controversy explained: Why Emma Stone’s movie caused backlash
Sony PicturesCameron Crowe’s 2015 movie Aloha was added to Netflix at the start of September 2024, stirring up a controversy nearing its 10th birthday.
Aloha is a romantic comedy starring Emma Stone, Bradley Cooper, and Rachel McAdams that flopped at the box office and earned unfavorable reviews upon release. Partially because it didn’t land, and perhaps because it was affected by negative chatter.
The story is about a military contractor sent to Hawaii to negotiate land for a new space center. While visiting, he runs into a former flame and begins forming a connection with an Air Force liaison.
The conversation was about the film’s casting, which was accused of ‘whitewashing’ the characters.
Aloha was criticized for whitewashing Allison Ng
Aloha received backlash for casting Stone as the quarter-Chinese and quarter-Hawaiian character, Allison Ng.
While the Air Force pilot in the story is of Hawaiian and Chinese descent, Stone is neither. People thought it was inappropriate to hire a white woman for the role.
You might remember Sanda Oh’s 2019 Golden Globes joke where she said Crazy Rich Asians was “the first studio film with an Asian-American lead since Ghost in the Shell and Aloha.”
What is whitewashing in movies?
Whitewashing is when a white person is cast in a non-white role.
The practice takes roles away from already underrepresented actors and is often historically inaccurate.
It’s thought Hollywood does it so that the casting pool is bigger or so projects can have a big name attached, which may be more challenging with authentic casting. This is a self-fulling prophecy because by stealing roles from up-and-coming actors, you prevent them from becoming A-list stars.
Whitewashing has become less common because of notoriety and being called out by moviegoers.
The term has older, similar definitions, and can refer to glossing over facts, censorship, and otherwise covering things up.
Emma Stone and Cameron Crow apologized
Crowe and Stone apologized while leaning on an excuse about Allison Ng’s ambiguous appearance.
Sony PicturesWhile promoting Woody Allen’s Irrational Man (oh boy) in 2015, Stone told AU news, “The character was not supposed to look like her background, which was a quarter Hawaiian and a quarter Chinese.
“I’ve learned on a macro level about the insane history of whitewashing in Hollywood and how prevalent the problem truly is. It’s ignited a conversation that’s very important.”
Crowe addressed it in a blog post, “I have heard your words and your disappointment, and I offer you a heartfelt apology to all who felt this was an odd or misguided casting choice.”
It continued, “Captain Allison Ng was written to be a super-proud quarter Hawaiian who was frustrated that, by all outward appearances, she looked nothing like one. A half-Chinese father was meant to show the surprising mix of cultures often prevalent in Hawaii.
“Extremely proud of her unlikely heritage, she feels personally compelled to over-explain every chance she gets. The character was based on a real-life, red-headed local who did just that.
“Whether that story point felt hurtful or humorous has been, of course, the topic of much discussion. However, I am so proud that in the same movie, we employed many Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders, both before and behind the camera.”
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