Other than William’s bravery and skill as a warrior, the film’s three white characters are often portrayed as being less advanced - whether morally, culturally, or technologically - than the Chinese. When Damon was announced as the star of The Great Wall, Wu was one of Hollywood’s earliest and loudest critics of his casting, claiming that it was part of “the repeatedly implied racist notion that white people are superior to POC and that POC need salvation from our own color via white strength.” She also called out the makers of The Great Wall and the film industry as a whole for their lack of courage and “lame” excuses for not trying harder to diversify their films and the stories they tell.
As an Asian American who grew up yearning to see anyone like myself, my family, or my Asian American friends in TV shows and movies, this is obviously a subject very close to my heart, and I’m glad Wu is out there calling attention to it. On the other hand, I’m also a big fan of Constance Wu, the breakout star of Fresh Off the Boat, a vocal progressive, and an outspoken critic of Hollywood’s lack of diversity and its continuing history of under-/mis-representation of non-white stories and characters.