Michelle Williams in 'redface' offends American Indians

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With promotion for the release of "Oz: The Great and Powerful" in high gear, the four stars at the center of the film are just about everywhere.

But Michelle Williams is getting some unfriendly attention as well this week over a cover shoot for AnOther Magazine, in which the 32-year-old is dressed in caricaturish American Indian drag, dubbed "redface".

Williams, who plays Glinda in the "Wizard of Oz" prequel, is described as "one of her generation's most sensitive and subtle actresses," but the photos are anything but.

The offending image shows Williams in jeans and plaid, with beads around her neck and feathers tucked into a the braids of a long, black wig.

The magazine told EOnline that each of the eight images were meant to show "different imaginary characters," "inspired by multiple fashion and cultural references, characters and eras, as well as by our admiration of Ms. Williams as one of the most respected and talented actresses of her generation."

But many aren't buying the magazine'es explanation.

Ruth Hopkins, an American Indian who is a columnist and tribal attorney, seems baffled by AnOther's choice and by Williams's decision to go along with it.

"Just as Blackface is never okay, Redface is never okay. Ever," Hopkins writes.

And at Refinery29:

The other images show Williams evoking a Warholesque Marilyn Monroe, a Kennedy-era co-ed and 1950s widows, among others.