Farewell director Lulu Wang criticises Ron Howard pick for film about Chinese pianist Lang Lang
- Comments follow controversy over Disney’s Mulan, which came under fire for hiring white director and screenwriters to retell famous Chinese tale
- Wang says it is ‘impossible’ to tell musical prodigy’s story without intimate understanding of Chinese culture and impact of Cultural Revolution on artists
Amid ongoing scrutiny of the lack of diversity in Hollywood, AGC Studios has tapped Ron Howard to direct a film about Chinese classical pianist Lang Lang.
Many, including The Farewell director Lulu Wang, questioned the project Tuesday on Twitter after the The Hollywood Reporter released details about the biopic, which will be produced by Brian Glazer and adapted for the screen by Michele and Kieran Mulroney, based on Lang’s memoir, Journey of a Thousand Miles.
“As a classically-trained pianist born in China, I believe it’s impossible to tell Lang Lang’s story without an intimate understanding of Chinese culture + the impact of the Cultural Revolution on artists & intellectuals + the effects of Western imperialism,” Wang tweeted. “Just saying.”
The film will be executive produced by PolyGram Entertainment’s Michele Anthony and David Blackman, along with Jean-Jacques Cesbron and Lang, who co-wrote Journey of a Thousand Miles based on his experience growing up as a musical prodigy in Shenyang, China, on a path to global superstardom.
“I’m not saying this because I want to direct this movie. I do not,” Wang continued in her Twitter thread.
“I just don’t think these are the artists to grapple w/ the cultural specificities of Northeast China where Lang Lang (and my family) are from. Or w/ the cultural aspect of the physical violence in his upbringing.”
