Thursday
Jul112013
Gone Girl Got Ben
Thursday, July 11, 2013 at 1:37PM 
JA from MNPP here with some hot-off-the-presses movie news - multiple Oscar winner Ben Affleck (I trust I'm not alone in gagging a little at that phrase) has just signed on to play the lead (of sorts) in David Fincher's adaptation of Gillian Flynn's hit novel Gone Girl. .
You can't really even talk about the novel without diving into spoilers for it, so I'm not going to even try. You can read that elsewhere. I'll just say I found the book to be an engrossing page-turner when I read it last year, and if you haven't read it yet it's perfect Summer reading - not so demanding you'll feel guilty getting sand in the creases, but you won't want to stay in the water too long and so you won't get sunburned because you'll want to get back to it.
.
That said I'm not a fan of Affleck the actor - I thought he was absolutely terrible in Argo, enough to keep what I found to otherwise be a solid entertainment well off my favorite movies of last year list. And so I'm pretty bummed that Fincher's choosing to work with him, but I suppose bankability wins out.
.
Any fans of the book? What do we think of Affleck for Nick? And who would you cast in the, ahem, other roles?
.
tagged Ben Affleck, David Fincher
Ben Affleck, David Fincher
Reader Comments (31)
Shoot, I thought this was going to be news about Ben as the DIRECTOR of Gone Girl, but oh well. Ben does give off that kind of glib almost douchey quality that Nick has to have. The guy who has to remind himself that he is supposed to smile more. Also, despite his obvious natural intellect, he could easily play a guy who is one or two beats behind the smartest person in the room.
As for the other role, they need a person who seems awfully wonderful but we can believe she'd be secretly icy and sneaky. Golly, that describes just about every age appropriate actress in Hollywood! I'd love it of course if they went with a major actress like Cate Blanchett, but maybe they could cast against type? If people hadn't soured on her so quickly it would be fun to have Anne Hathway a/k/a America's Sweetheart in the role. Who is another "sweetheart" type? Amy Adams?
The Playlist, where I got this news from and linked to in the article, has updated their headline to say that "Natalie Portman, Charlize Theron & Emily Blunt Eyed For Female Lead." I adore Charlize but she always seems icy to me so I dunno if she's right. The other two, I can almost wrap my head around.
I'm surprised Fincher's not trying to cast Rooney Mara honestly. I guess it's too close to Side Effcts though.
When I'd first heard they were making a movie I'd read that it was Reese Witherspoon's company that were producing it so I figured she was taking the role.
Jake Gyllenhaal would've been perfect for Nick, but is probably a non-starter for any future Fincher films. *Casey* Affleck would've been an interesting choice, but Ben? No thanks.
Chastain has been my #1 choice for Amy ever since I read it, but it doesn't seem like she's even in the conversation. Of the three in that Playlist article, Blunt is the only one who interests me.
I'd swear I just read that Resse Witherspoon had the part of the wife.
I'm reading it right now, which is why I'm working on 4 hours of sleep this morning. CLIFFHANGERS!!!!! Dunh dunh DUNH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This post sounds like it was written a decade ago. Affleck has improved as an actor tremendously. Go back to 2003, pretentious journalists.
Gwyneth Paltrow for Amy - she has that patrician look Amy's supposed to have, and can shift from warm to icy pretty easily. Also, she's about the right age, if I remember the book correctly.
Please please please give Amy to Chastain. She would be the perfect fit.
Also tr, he may have improved as an actor, but he's still not a great actor by any stretch. He was so mediocre in Argo and by far the least interesting thing it... except maybe Alan Arkin, who somehow got an Oscar nomination for it? Still trying to wake up from that dream.
After I read the book and started thinking about the inevitable adaptation, I was hoping they'd go with Garret Dillahunt or Michael Shannon or someone else deserving of a slightly larger role than we're used to seeing them in.
He's got the look down and this isn't meant to be a jab at Affleck, but he's got that whole affectless thing down pat, which is a big element of Nick's character. It might turn out to be a good fit.
Gwyneth would be interesting, but Amy needs to be sympathetic at the onset, which Gwyneth inherently isn't. Chastain's the obvious choice, but isn't she tied up right around this time with Interstellar? Natalie Portman's growing on me as an option, too, but she can read a bit cold.
Did Argo really win Best Picture? Still hoping to wake up from this nightmare.
I was sure Rees Witherspoon was playing the lead as well. And then I decided that Ryan Philippe should play the husband and wouldn't that be fun! Oh well.
I think Ben Affleck is a perfectly fine actor sometimes and was very good in Argo. I think he'll be fine in this.
hiforever1267-- I thought it was going to be Reese too and I think that would be the best! I would like her to do a sociopath Tracy Flick role every once in a while. Otherwise maybe Anna Camp? A bit young but I'd buy her in the role. I'd be ok with Amy Adams too. I wish Laura Linney wasn't too old!
I think Affleck is a good choice for the role. I buy him as that straightforward noir dupee. Though I think Jake Gyllenhaal would work too, but yeah, I'd imagine he's a no-go. How about Jon Hamm? He'd probably be my pick.
Who is Go?
Mark-- Michelle Monaghan, maybe?
Reese is the producer I say Charlize she was beyond award worthy for Young Adult.
I'm loving the idea of Gwyneth in the role.
How about Emma Stone? I would love to see her play against type.
Jennifer Ehle could go blonde.
Can't Rooney Mara play Ben's little punked out sister? I mean if Fincher/Mara are the new Scorcese/De Niro?
When I was reading, I put a (slightly) younger Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet in the roles.
LOVED this book though. Ties with Beautiful Ruins as my favorite book of 2012.
"...Amy needs to be sympathetic at the onset, which Gwyneth inherently isn't."
Huh?
I was picturing Gwyneth, Amy Adams or January Jones. But if its Charlize, I won't be mad... but I don't know...
um, Emma Stone is waaay too young. It is crucial to the plot that Amy is about 5 years older than her husband.
I have thought the two leads from Revenge would be great if only they were about 10 years older. Emily van Camp is perfect playing a woman who you can never read (and can go from sweet to evil in a second...), and Joshua Bowman has that 'so good looking you want to punch him' look the book describes.
I recently finished the book and for maybe the latter half of it, I could not stop picturing Reid Scott (Dan from Veep) as Nick. He could totally nail the whole smarmy, yuppie element of the character, but alas Hollywood is still making up that snub to Blah Ben. Not that he couldn't be good; Nick actually seems like an extremely well-suited role for him, but he's just such an unexceptional actor. It's hard to even describe what feels so consistently mediocre about his acting, but every performance just seems like he's on autopilot.
Reese is producing and due to her arrest record is now a major studio risk. Elizabeth Banks and Chastain as the twin sister. Gwyneth has no chemistry with Ben. Plus the females have to be approved by Jennifer Garner because Ben humps things. Not an easy fit.
Helen-- Does Reese's arrest really make her into a big studio risk? Stupid sexism!
I'm just going to choose to believe she masterminded the whole arrest thing as her the-mask-is-slipping moment to convince everyone she had both the pretty face and the icy heart necessary for this role. Think of the (horrible word alert) narrative! We would be drowning in the thinkpieces! America's Sweetheart turns American Psycho: can women really have it all? etc. etc. Eat your heart out Christian Bale, Reese is livin' it.
Also I just remembered Rachel McAdams exists and now I want her in the role (sorry Reese).
I still think of the critic's comment (Shaun Levy?) about State of Play, that Ben Affleck looks more like an Easter Island head every day.
I want Natalie Portman to be Amy (I hated that character). Black Swan goes nuts again but this time after she leaves NYC and moves to a small town in the Mid West!
Entertainment Weekly is reporting that Rosamund Pike is being considered for the role of Amy. I must say I'm impressed that they've moved beyond the obvious A-list stars. Rosamund must have a heck of an agent!
Saw a snippet of Clueless this weekend and thought Alicia Silverstone would be great as Amy. She does sympathetic and her breakout movie with Cary Elwes (I think it was called Crush) she did scary. Of course she may be out of the biz, but interesting choice.