Yes, there are legit claims of white-washing in cinema, but it's not always black and white.

Yes, there are legit claims of white-washing in cinema, but it's not always black and white.

There are 2 immediate movies that should come to mind based on popular anime. Ghost in the Shell and Death Note. Both have lead roles filled by white actors. Based on the setting (and the fact that Scarlets makeup and fx team managed to get her to look almost exactly as her role) Ghost in the shell is a bit more forgivable. Also most Japanese seem to be satisfied with this choice. Deathnote on the other hand seems to be making the story fit the choice of going with a white-ish actor.

Being in an anime doesn't make the character Japanese, the anime "art style" tends to diminish our features that makes one race different than another (Characters like Brock from Pokemon have to be drawn with slints for eyes so you won't think that they aren't Japanese). So you have to look for context clues in the story, setting, and overall inspiration.

Seven Deadly Sins for example, takes place on a continent called Britania, obviously all of the characters are English. Attack on Titan gave all of their characters German names, and so on.

That is not to say that White Washing is not a problem, it is a persistent problem, and not helped by the fact that we raise such a ruckus when traditionally white roles are given to non-white actors. But not every slight is racially motivated. They don't open the audition for traditionally non-white roles and say "we need a white person to fill these roles" and if they do they need to be called out and fired.