Crowe offers apology for ‘disappointment’
“Aloha” director Cameron Crowe has responded to criticism of his casting Emma Stone as a part-Asian character in the romantic comedy set in Hawaii.
“I have heard your words and your disappointment, and I offer you a heart-felt apology to all who felt this was an odd or misguided casting choice,” Crowe wrote on his blog, the Uncool, Tuesday evening.
The story of a jaded defense contractor ( Bradley Cooper) looking to get his life back together costars Stone as Allison Ng, an Air Force pilot who is one-quarter Chinese and one-quarter Hawaiian on her father’s side; her mother is of Swedish descent.
“As far back as 2007, Captain Allison Ng was written to be a super-proud Hawaiian who was frustrated that, by all outward appearances, she looked nothing like one,” Crowe wrote. “A half-Chinese father was meant to show the surprising mix of cultures often prevalent in Hawaii. Extremely proud of her unlikely heritage, she feels personally compelled to over-explain every chance she gets. The character was based on a real-life, red-headed local who did just that.”
In his blog post, the filmmaker also said “Aloha” has “felt like a misunderstood movie” since emails in which it was badmouthed by Sony executives were leaked last year.
In recent weeks, the movie has been called out for featuring mostly white actors and accused of cultural misappropriation via its choice of title.
Kunis stalker captured after escape
A man sentenced to a mental health facility for stalking actress Mila Kunis was recaptured Wednesday in Santa Monica, California, four days after he escaped from the institution, sheriff’s officials said. Deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s major crimes division took Stuart Lynn Dunn into custody in an alley about a half-mile from the beach.
Dunn pleaded no contest to stalking Kunis in January 2013. He was sentenced to six months of rehabilitation, five years of probation and ordered to stay away from the actress and her representatives for 10 years.
He disappeared Saturday night from a mental health center in Pomona, about 50 miles from where he was captured. Authorities believe he got out of the Olive Vista Behavioral Health Center by climbing through a bathroom window and scaling a barbed-wire fence.
Kunis was notified of his escape, and authorities said at the time he should be considered dangerous.
The birthday bunch
Sex therapist and media personality Dr. Ruth Westheimer is 87. Actor Bruce Dern is 79. Actress-singer Michelle Phillips is 71. Actor Parker Stevenson is 63. Rhythm-and-blues singer Al B. Sure! is 47. Comedian Horatio Sanz is 46. Actor Noah Wyle is 44. Actor-comedian Russell Brand is 40. Actress Angelina Jolie is 40. Model Bar Refaeli is 30.