Sir Ridley Scott thinks he should have chosen Christopher Plummer over Kevin Spacey for ‘All the Money in the World’ in the first place.
The 80-year-old filmmaker decided to recast the lead role in the movie after Spacey was accused of making sexual advances towards actor Anthony Rapp when he was just 14-years-old and he has now said that he should have gone with Plummer to begin with.
He said: "We only went with Kevin because Kevin was younger, the part was challenging and Christopher was 87. I erred on the side of youth, which I shouldn’t have."
Speaking about reshoots, he added: "For me it was just organisation, bang bang bang bang bang. If I was going to feel anxious about anything it would have been about my new Mr Getty because it’s a lot of words, 22 scenes. He had to get it down … Plummer’s got this enormous charm whether he’s doing King Lear or The Sound of Music. This guy’s a real colouring book, he can do anything. I’d say, ‘Action’. Bang, away we go. Because I’m [simultaneously] doing close-up and wide-shot, I’m capturing everything. The most important thing of all is the actor. To do less takes is better, because an actor wears out. It’s a bit like being a standup comedian. You tell a joke once, it’s funny … the third time, it’s starting to wear a bit thin."
Meanwhile, Scott thinks it is a "pity" that Spacey did what he allegedly did as he is a "very good actor".
He told The Guardian newspaper: "I knew he liked the chaps, you know. But it’s not my business. I never witnessed anything untoward. He’s a very good actor. It’s a pity … I can separate the creative talent from whoever the man is. I just hope a lot of this isn’t going OTT. I know that’s a very unpopular thing to say, but there it is. It’s certainly going to affect dating."
Sir Ridley Scott wishes he chose Christopher Plummer
