Washington, Dec 8 (ANI): American actress Jennifer Hudson has come under attack from a South African actors’ union after she was cast as Winnie Mandela in a new biopic.

Hudson, 28, is set to play the ex-wife of the country’s former president Nelson Mandela in South African filmmaker Darrell J. Roodt’s new project ‘Winnie’.

But her appointment has caused uproar among the members of the Creative Workers Union of South Africa, who insist a local actress should have been cast as the title character in a movie so important to the country’s history.

The Union’s secretary general, Oupa Lebogo, even goes as far as threatening to boycott the picture if Hudson’s casting is not reconsidered.

“This decision must be reversed, it must be stopped now. If the matter doesn’t come up for a discussion, we will push for a moratorium to be placed on the film,” Contactmusic quoted Lebogo as saying.

Protesters also argue Hudson’s inclusion in the film project will hinder the country’s development of its movie industry.

“It can’t happen that we want to develop our own Hollywood and yet bring in imports,” union president Mabutho Sithole told the Citizen newspaper. (ANI)