Before any true representation of Asians appeared on movie screens, many of the Asian characters were being played by white actors. Some examples include Katharine Hepburn starring in The Dragon Seed (1944), Richard Barthelmess in Broken Blossoms (1919), and Shirley Maclaine in the film My Geisha (1962). The white actors used makeup to mimic stereotypical East-Asian looks and characteristics. Things like broken teeth, a slanted face structure, and small eyes were ways of mimicking the look. This type of practice is often called “yellow face”.

Some famous actors like Katherine Hepburn and Marlon Brando to Fred Astaire and John Wayne took part in the practice. Famous actor and film producer of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, Mickey Rooney, did yellowface for the character he played; Rooney played a character named Mr. Yunioshi. In an article by The Christian Science Monitor, the author states that “the history of yellowface - using everything from skin-darkening pigments to tape and rubber bands to alter the appearance of white actors - stretches back to mid-18th century theater. The scrutiny is a result of a history of yellowface in Hollywood that continues with the practice of whitewashing, where a white actor plays an Asian character... examples include Scarlett Johansson as a cybernetic Japanese woman in "Ghost in the Shell" (2017) and Tilda Swinton as the Ancient One in "Doctor Strange" (2016)" In the article, author Rebecca Asoulin interviewed Peter X Feng, an Asian American Professor at University of Delaware, about the issue of yellowface being used throughout Hollywood. He explained that he is "fine with a white actor being cast in an Asian role, as long as it's in a world where an Asian actor can be cast in a white role. But the system is unbalanced.” Not only were the Asian characters on screens not authentic, but they were extremely unrealistic and damaging to the Asian community. The unfortunate result of yellow face is that to this day, there is a continuation of whitewashing. I believe that it is important to keep in mind that when showing fictional characters, people have to be aware of the audience that is viewing it.