“Racist & Sick!” Star Wars Star John Boyega Removed From Chinese Version Of Ad
Star Wars star John Boyega has become embroiled in a racism storm after he was edited out of a fragrance ad he wrote and directed for the Chinese market.
The 28-year-old Boyega, famous for his role as Finn in the Star Wars franchise, is the global brand ambassador for UK fragrance brand Jo Malone.
Back in 2019, he wrote, starred and directed in a deeply personal spot for the brand called “A London gent” that highlighted his Nigerian heritage and growing up in the London neighbourhood of Peckham.
Check out the spot below.
However, the ad has just been remade for the Chinese market and Boyega replaced by Chinese actor Liu Haoran.
However, the new spot has been hit with claims it is racist and forced Jo Malone into an apology.
In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, the brand said: “We deeply apologise for what, on our end, was a mistake in the local execution of the John Boyega campaign, John is a tremendous artist with great personal vision and direction.
“The concept for the film was based on John’s personal experiences and should not have been replicated.
“While we immediately took action and removed the local version of the campaign, we recognise that this was painful and that offence was caused.
“We respect John, and support our partners and fans globally. We are taking this misstep very seriously and we are working together as a brand to do better moving forward,” the apology read.
However, social media users were quick to pounce on the incident with many believing it was racist and that Boyega’s work had been “stolen”. Check out some of the reaction below:
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