10 Most Awkward Instances Of Hollywood Whitewashing

4. Christian Bale - Moses - Exodus: Gods And Kings

Christian Bale is one of Hollywood's biggest actors, so it's no surprise that Ridley Scott sought him out for the lead role of Moses in Exodus: Gods and Kings. Problem is, of course, that Hollywood has conditioned us to forget that Moses wouldn't have looked anything like a white guy born in England (nor would Ramesses II, the Prince of Egypt, have looked anything like Joel Edgerton - even with a shaved head and patronising eye make-up). What made this particular instance of whitewashing even more controversial, however, stemmed from what director Ridley Scott had to say on the matter - words which kind of came out sounding like thinly-veiled racism on the filmmaker's part:

"I can't mount a film of this budget, where I have to rely on tax rebates in Spain, and say that my lead actor is Mohammad so-and-so from such-and-such. I'm just not going to get it financed. So the question doesn't even come up."

Scott's poorly chosen words made the whole Exodus: Gods and Kings thing even more awkward. Seriously, Ridley Scott: was there not a better way for you to get your point across without plucking "Mohammand so-and-so and such-and-such" out of the air?