Angelina Jolie has come under fire after it was revealed that while picking the cast for her new movie the casting directors devised a “cruel” game for Cambodian orphans.
Jolie’s latest directorial venture First They Killed My Father is an adaptation of a personal account by human rights activist and Jolie’s friend Long Ung of her experiences as a child living in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge years.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Jolie said the casting directors placed money on a table, asking the child to think of something she needed the money for and then snatch it away. The casting director would then pretend to catch the child with the child being asked to come up with a lie.
“Srey Moch (the girl ultimately chosen for the part) was the only child that stared at the money for a very, very long time,” Jolie said. “When she was forced to give it back, she became overwhelmed with emotion. All these different things came flooding back. When she was asked later what the money was for, she said her grandfather had died, and they didn’t have enough money for a nice funeral.”
Many have criticised this “game” for its exploitative nature. Some wondered what film could be worth re-triggering a child’s deep trauma. “Why would Angelina Jolie subject impoverished children to this cruel scheme?” one Twitter user asked.
