ERIC Cantona has been blasted for starring in a Chinese “propaganda” film about Uighurs.
The Man United legend plays himself in Chino-French movie Magic 7.
But critics fear the production will leave viewers believing the oppressed Muslims live in peace.
Footballer-turned-actor Cantona, 54, coaches Uighur kids to success in a “lovely” Chinese state, reviewers say of the film.
They called it a “tourism flyer” for Xinjiang, a region where the Communist Party are accused of genocide against Uighurs who are forced into work camps.
A French newspaper claimed the film falsely “presents an image of a good life under the Chinese”.
The Communist regime last week imposed sanctions on nine Brits for focusing on human rights abuses against Uighurs.
Tory MP Tom Tugendhat, one of those banned, remarked: “As the great Cantona said, ‘When the seagulls follow the trawler, it is because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea’.
“I presume these fish shimmer like silver and gold.”
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Gray Sergeant, from foreign policy think tank Henry Jackson Society, said: “If this film is purely propaganda for Beijing, as the review suggests, all those involved should be ashamed.”
The movie, filmed in 2017 but still with no distributor, was made in part by French firm Quad, which said: “It has nothing to do with the political situation.”
Cantona was asked to comment.