Yesterday, the world got its first glimpse of the trailer for “Gods of Egypt,” a Lionsgate film whose IMDB description simply says, “A common thief joins a mythical god on a quest through Egypt.”
The film’s stars are: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as “Horus,” Gerard Butler as “Set,” Geoffrey Rush as “Ra,” Brenton Thwaites as “Bek,” Courtney Eaton as “Zaya” and Chadwick Boseman (“Get on Up” and “42”) as “Thoth.” Of them, only Boseman can trace his primary lineage back to the continent of Africa—where Egypt is located. And Boseman speaks zero words in the trailer.
Between the video and the promotional posters that were released last week, the world—well, at least the portion that understands how geography and revisionist history work—is not pleased. The reactions speak for themselves:
Ancient Egyptians were super white the #godsofegypt Movie is going 4 the historical accuracy with the 98% white cast pic.twitter.com/ayuRcZDsgb
— Missy Elote (@picap0ll0) November 12, 2015
Why is it so hard to cast people from the continent of Africa for films set in Africa??? Get it together, racists. #GodsOfEgypt
— Claudia Boleyn (@ClaudiaBoleyn) November 18, 2015
So…I finally watched the #GodsOfEgypt trailer… The Whiteness. Holy crap the Whiteness. They didn’t even pretend.
— Elon James White (@elonjames) November 18, 2015
And look at these extras. You can blue screen Egypt in the background but can’t cast real Egyptians??? #GodsOfEgypt pic.twitter.com/RR8mTuK4wP
— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) November 12, 2015
*raises hand* yeah I have a problem with the casting… It’s a bit on the pale side #GodsOfEgypt pic.twitter.com/CwFdWzHdnB
— vimto mami (@lunarnomad) November 12, 2015
Who else would rather watch MJ’s "Remember the Time" video than #GodsofEgypt? https://t.co/hSxSWjCW9y
— The Nerds of Color (@TheNerdsofColor) November 12, 2015
Dear Hollywood, Egypt is in Africa. Northern to be exact. Why is that so hard to grasp? Stop gentrifying African countries. #GodsOfEgypt
— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) November 12, 2015
How did Egypt get exempt as the only African nation that is not Black? I need a history course refresher #GodsOfEgypt
— BlackGirlNerds (@BlackGirlNerds) November 12, 2015
I cannot understand how they seriously cast Chadwick Boseman as a LITERAL all-knowing magical negro. #GodsOfEgypt pic.twitter.com/r9SmNPVGwI
— Carrie Tupper (@mermaidshells) November 12, 2015
Watch the trailer for yourself above.