Italian Posters for “12 Years a Slave” Spark Controversy
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Ben Gabbe/Getty Images(ROME) — A critically acclaimed film is getting a critique of another kind in Italy.
Posters advertising the movie 12 Years a Slave are causing the kind of buzz its Italian distributor BIM didn’t intend.
In the U.S., the poster for the movie features its acclaimed star Chiwetel Ejiofor, who plays a free black man sold into slavery. In Italy, however, two posters for the film feature white actors Michael Fassbender and Brad Pitt — who plays only a minor role toward the end of the movie — triggering Internet accusations of racism.
The film’s U.S. producer, Lionsgate, says the Italian poster is unauthorized and will recall it.
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