Japanese star defends casting in 'Geisha'
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-29 09:33

Ken Watanabe, the Japanese star of "Memoirs of a Geisha," is defending the casting of Chinese actresses for the film's main roles, saying talent is the most important consideration.

Japanese actor Ken Watanabe poses at the premiere of 'Memoirs of a Geisha' in Los Angeles in this Sunday, Dec. 4, 2005 file photo. Watanabe is defending the casting of Chinese actresses for the film's main roles. [AP]

The English-language movie has inflamed historical tensions between Japan and China, with critics saying a movie about Japanese culture should have a Japanese actress in the lead.

But Watanabe, who plays a businessman in "Memoirs," likened the casting choices to using non-Italian singers in an Italian opera.

"Talent is the most important thing. A beautiful soprano. A wonderful tenor. Not your nationality," Watanabe says in the February edition of the magazine Prestige Hong Kong.

The film is set in Japan and adapted from the American novel. It stars Chinese actresses Ziyi Zhang and Gong Li, and Chinese-Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh. They join several Japanese performers.

The filmmakers have said casting was an exhaustive, meticulous process that considered acting ability, star power and physical traits.

Watanabe received an Oscar nomination in 2004 for his role in "The Last Samurai" opposite Tom Cruise.