>>16981976Allegations of antisemitism and anti-Arab sentiment
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It has been suggested that the character is offensive because of his perceived similarities to a stereotypical Jew, having a large hooked nose, beady eyes, unkempt facial hair, speaking in a gravelly voice, and being portrayed as greedy and covetous. J. Hoberman of The Village Voice called him "the most blatant ethnic stereotype" due to his hooked nose.[7] Bruce Gottlieb of Slate magazine criticized him as well, comparing his character to the antisemitic notion that the Jewish race is "behind the slave trade".[8] Patricia J. Williams of The Nation stated that Watto was also described as a stereotype of Arabs, but that he was "more comprehensively anti-Semitic—both anti-Arab and anti-Jew."[9] She added that Watto reminded her of an "anti-Semitic caricature published in Vienna at the turn of the 20th century."[6]
Jane Prettyman of American Review noted that after leaving the theater, she heard two young boys describe him as "that weird little Jew guy with wings". Prettyman described his depiction as "not at all subtle", and said that "it can be counted on to flush out already-formed Jew-haters among young audiences and give them permission to continue their hatred out loud."[10]
Others have disagreed with this interpretation.[11] Andrew Howe states that Watto's "nose seems less a cultural referent to Shylock or Fagin than to an elephant's trunk".[12] Others have described Watto's accent as Italian, and not Jewish.[13][14] Andy Secombe himself, who provided the voice of Watto, when asked about the similarities between the character and Fagin, stated that Watto is not Jewish, and the accent he used for voicing the character is Italian. He also cited Michael Ripper's performance in Hammer films as inspiration.[15][16]
