To be honest, I was skeptical when I heard they cast Ryosuke Yamada as Ed. He was good as a child actor, but I haven't been satisfied with his performance in recent years.
...
He is short though LOL
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azPVumixZuE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihc964sRt8M
Sorry, but Ed and Al, Winry, Riza, Hawkeye and Breda, The Armstrongs ... are not Asian, not trying to whitewash this, but the story takes place in an Alternate Germany, not Japan
It's quite impossible thou for a japanese production to get this many foreign looking actors who have to speak fluent japanese too (since it's for a japanese audience primarily.
It would not only cost them huge amount of money but also there would be a high chance japanese people wouldn't go see the movie (since they're not really that fond of foreigners)
It's just normal marketing reasons. They want to make money. ╮( ̄▽ ̄)╭
I hate dubbing. There was one time I watched a Japanese movie where they cast a Chinese character for the role of the Chinese detective and despite his handsomeness and good acting I wanted to stab him every time he opened his mouth T-T
Also, the LA is not going to sell if Japanese people, its main market, are not familiar or comfortable with the actors. FMA setting is Western, but because it was made by Japanese people for Japanese people, it has nuances that only people in that culture can comprehend. Working with a cast of foreigners who don't comprehend the language may also pose some difficulty to production, 'cos the staff will mostly be Japanese.
Just saw the second trailer, is anyone else a little disappointed with the casting?