--- description: A white actor who was cast as a lead in the upcoming Hellboy reboot withdrew after learning the comic book character was of Asian descent title: White Actor Leaves 'Hellboy' Role After Realizing His Character Was Originally Asian image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926fc0046075f1bf/6988db9be76ad22e8562eee3/ed-skrein-hellboy.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # White Actor Leaves _Hellboy_ Role After Realizing His Character Was Originally Asian  by [Katie Reilly](/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 28, 2017 10:44 PM CUT  Actor Ed Skrein attends the "Deadpool" fan event at AMC Empire Theatre on Feb. 8, 2016 in New York City. Actor Ed Skrein attends the "Deadpool" fan event at AMC Empire Theatre on Feb. 8, 2016 in New York City.Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images  by [Katie Reilly](/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 28, 2017 10:44 PM CUT A white actor who was cast as one of the leads in the upcoming _Hellboy_ reboot has withdrawn from the role upon learning that the character in the comic books was of Asian descent. Ed Skrein, who played Ajax in [_Deadpool_](http://time.com/4645144/deadpool-suicide-squad-oscars/ "undefined") and starred in [_The Transporter Refueled,_](http://time.com/3752085/the-tranporter-refueled-ed-skrein-taken-mercenery-delivery-guy/ "undefined") joined the _Hellboy_ cast as Major Ben Daimio [last week](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/deadpool-actor-ed-skrein-joining-hellboy-reboot-1029857 "undefined") — a casting decision that many criticized as the [latest example](http://time.com/4701118/ghost-in-the-shell-whitewashing-memes/ "undefined") of Hollywood [whitewashing movie characters](http://time.com/4316844/margaret-cho-whitewashedout-asian-characters/ "undefined"). “I accepted the role unaware that the character in the original comics was of mixed Asian heritage. There has been intense conversation and understandable upset since that announcement, and I must do what I feel is right,” Skrein said in a [statement](https://twitter.com/edskrein/status/902244967296491520 "undefined") on Monday. “It is clear that representing this character in a culturally accurate way holds significance for people, and that to neglect this responsibility would continue a worrying tendency to obscure ethnic minority stories and voices in the Arts. I feel it is important to honour and respect that. Therefore, I have decided to step down so the role can be cast appropriately.” > [](https://twitter.com/edskrein/status/902244967296491520) Skrein’s decision was praised by the [creator of the Hellboy comics](https://twitter.com/artofmmignola/status/902251418324615168 "undefined") and [the actor](https://twitter.com/DavidKHarbour/status/902271936713121792 "undefined") who has signed on to play the title character. “It is my hope that one day these discussions will become less necessary and that we can help make equal representation in the Arts a reality,” Skrein said. “I am sad to leave Hellboy but if this decision brings us closer to that day, it is worth it. I hope it makes a difference.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4919484/hellboy-ed-skrein-whitewashing-character/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4919484/hellboy-ed-skrein-whitewashing-character/"},"headline":"White Actor Leaves Hellboy Role After Realizing His Character Was Originally Asian","datePublished":"2017-08-28T22:44:43.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T17:12:12.089Z","description":"\"I must do what I feel is right\"","url":"https://time.com/4919484/hellboy-ed-skrein-whitewashing-character/","keywords":["movies","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926fc0046075f1bf/6988db9be76ad22e8562eee3/ed-skrein-hellboy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Katie Reilly","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926fc0046075f1bf/6988db9be76ad22e8562eee3/ed-skrein-hellboy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"\"Deadpool\" Fan Event","caption":"\"Deadpool\" Fan Event","creditText":"Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/movies/","name":"movies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4919484/hellboy-ed-skrein-whitewashing-character/","name":"White Actor Leaves Hellboy Role After Realizing His Character Was Originally Asian"}}]}] ```