Thursday March 28th, 2024
Download SceneNow app

Makers Of 'Gods Of Egypt' Apologize For Terrible Casting Before Film's Release

The people behind our new favourite punching bag, Gods Of Egypt, released apologies after CairoScene's scathing criticism for their casting choices.

Staff Writer

Makers Of 'Gods Of Egypt' Apologize For Terrible Casting Before Film's Release
Since the debut of its posters, Gods Of Egypt has been on the tail end of an Internet shitstorm as the upcoming Hollywood blockbuster features a cast of people who are of predominantly European ancestry playing ancient Egyptians and their gods.
 
Undoubtedly because of CairoScene’s own vitriolic attacks on this culturally bankrupt and dubiously cast bullshit sandwich of a movie, the director and the studio have both issued apologies in anticipation of the film's release, basically guaranteeing its complete and utter failure. 
 
Director Alex Proyas said, “The process of casting a movie has many complicated variables, but it is clear that our casting choices should have been more diverse. I sincerely apologise to those who are offended by the decisions we made.”
 
Hmm…  okay, Proyas, I guess I can understand. Many a night have I spent hunched over my laptop trying to put together a feature for work only to realize I completely neglected the history of one of the oldest and most well-known civilisations on the planet, as well as an entire continent's worth of geography. I’m only forgiving you because your 1994 film The Crow was a critical part of my teenage goth phase.  
 
Lionsgate, the studio behind the film, issued an apology: "We recognise that it is our responsibility to help ensure that casting decisions reflect the diversity and culture of the time periods portrayed. In this instance we failed to live up to our own standards of sensitivity and diversity, for which we sincerely apologise. Lionsgate is deeply committed to making films that reflect the diversity of our audiences. We have, can and will continue to do better.​​" Lionsgate actually does a decent job at apologising here. It’s true, this is the same studio that brought us Crash, as well as pissed off the dark racist-as-fuck corners of the Internet by casting black people in The Hunger Games.
 
So, is corporate oversight an excusable, um, excuse for seriously doing a bad job on what could have been a Game-Of-Thrones-type fantasy epic set in ancient Egypt? Was this flick doomed from the get-go? Who knows. But I can’t stay mad at the director who gave me a solid three years' worth of angst-ridden Halloween costumes, or the studio that gave us the Madea film series. Those movies are hilarious.
 
Gods Of Egypt hits US theatres in February.