“The Great Wall” trailer features Matt Damon (video)

 October 10, 2016 - 13:22 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Matt Damon joins a war worth fighting in the new trailer for “The Great Wall”, released Saturday, October 8, according to Variety.

The trailer reveals more of the film’s plot, which centers around an attack on the Great Wall of China. In one scene Damon looks to have to prove his fighting ability to panel on onlookers. He shoots several arrows into a beam which catch and balance a bowl before it hits the ground.

“I fought for greed.. and Gods… this is the first war I’ve seen… worth fighting,” Damon says in the new trailer.

Directed by Yimou Zhang, “The Great Wall,” also stars Pedro Pascal and Willem Dafoe alongside Chinese stars including Andy Lau, Zhang Hanyu and Eddie Peng. It is the first movie to emerge from Legendary Entertainment’s Legendary East operation.

The film has come under fire for positioning Damon’s lead character as a potential stereotype as a “white savior.” Actress Constance Wu criticized the casting when she wrote, “We have to stop perpetuating the racist myth that only a white man can save the world… Our heroes don’t look like Matt Damon.”

Later, the film’s director responded to the criticism in an interview with EW. He said, “Matt Damon is not playing a role that was originally conceived for a Chinese actor. The arrival of his character in our story is an important plot point. There are five major heroes in our story and he is one of them — the other four are all Chinese.”