At New York Comic Con on Saturday, Matt Damon derided Donald Trump.
Dave Karger, the moderator at a panel discussing the star’s new film, Great Wall, tried to slip in a jokey question about Trump’s proposal to build a wall between the US and Mexico and force Mexico to foot the bill.
“In this country right now the concept of building a large wall to keep out an unwanted element is very timely,” he said to director Zhang Yimou. “What has it been like to see those parallels?”
“That’s a different movie,” Damon cut in.
Raising fond memories of his famous anger over the nomination of Sarah Palin as Republican John McCain’s running mate in 2008, he continued: “I just got a text from my dad: ‘Happy birthday, my boy. My present to you is a reminder that this time next month we’ll be able to kiss Trump goodbye. Doubt you’ll get a better one.”
The crowd cheered.
Damon added: “Although if he does get elected we might have to worry Mexico will build a wall to keep him out.”
The footage from the film itself emphasised the movie’s lavish special effects, though they were difficult to appreciate on a small screen at the 5,000-seat Madison Square Garden.
Jing Tian, another of the film’s stars, said she was proud of her role as a general. “The equality between men and women in leadership roles is something I wish we could see more of in film, and in real life for that matter,” she said, to cheers.
Young Chinese and Chinese American women who appeared to be fans of one of the film’s Chinese stars, pop singer Wang Junkai, filled several of the rows closest to the stage. A group had brought light-up signs in Mandarin, which they said read: “We’re going to rock the world with you.”
The fantasy film, a production of Chinese-owned movie company Legendary Pictures, is the first English-language film from Raise the Red Lantern director Yimou, who directed the opening ceremony at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
The casting of Damon attracted controversy, with some critics describing the addition of a white American actor to the predominately Chinese cast as “whitewashing”.
The panel departed from the usual Comic Con format and did not take general questions from the audience, although Karger did briefly interact with Wang’s fans.
