Gone Girl Producer Reese Witherspoon Not Mad She Didn’t Score The Role Of Amy Dunne
Gone Girl almost had a different leading lady. As we know, Rosamund Pike scored the coveted role of the extremely engaging psychopath Amy Dunne, but before Pike was ever involved, producer Reese Witherspoon (yes, that Reese Witherspoon) was positioning the film to be her breakout hit.
Witherspoon bought the rights to the novel with the hope that she would produce Gone Girl and star in it. That all changed once director David Fincher came on board. Fincher simply didn’t see Witherspoon in the role, and the actress stepped back on the project to act as just a producer. Now, if you’re an actress vying for a huge hit after a lull, this kind of news would be devastating, but Witherspoon kept her ego in check.
In an interview with Deadline, Reese said, “(I want) to create interesting roles for women. I’ve never thought I was right for every single role, and I’m actually thrilled to help craft opportunities for actresses. When I spoke to David, it was with no ego involved. Mostly, I was thrilled one of our first movies was going to be directed by one of the great American filmmakers of our time. My job as producer was to support him and learn all I could. I’ve known Rosamund Pike for years. I was excited about the idea of her playing someone so different.”
Reese Witherspoon Hoboes Through the Winning ‘Wild’ http://t.co/nhY3b50rrt pic.twitter.com/CEjnPFOdgo
— The Village Voice (@villagevoice) December 14, 2014
As it turns out, it addition to Gone Girl, Witherspoon also happened to buy the rights of another popular book, Wild, by Cheryl Strayed. This was a real life account of one woman’s struggle to kick her addictions and reclaim her own self worth while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. Due to her role in the film, Witherspoon is receiving Oscar buzz and has been nominated so far for a SAG, a Golden Globe, and will most likely be nominated for an Academy Award.
Now she’s in the unique position that she will most likely be nominated three times at the Academy Awards. As acting producer on Gone Girl and Wild, if either get nominated for Best Film (and with ten slots it’s likely), Witherspoon will be nominated for both, along with a Best Actress nomination for her role in Wild. So far we don’t know if that will pan out, but we’re willing to bet on it.
Currently, Reese Witherspoon’s Wild is out in theaters.
[Image via Fox Searchlight]
