Angelina Jolie passes on Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity again

by Liam Goodwin on September 2, 2010 · 5 comments

Angelina Jolie SerenaEarlier this year Angelina Jolie turned down an offer to play the lead in Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity, an ambitious movie set in space which would be 60% CG feature animation. Much of the film is devoted to a woman’s struggle to get back to Earth (and her daughter) after her team at a remote space station are decimated by debris from an exploded satellite

Robert Downey Jr. signed up to star as the team leader, but it was never the intention for him to carry the film. Following the performance of Salt at the box office Jolie is the only proven actress who can carry a big budget movie. Because of this Warner Bros. has gone back to Jolie with another off, but she has turned it down once again.

From Deadline:

Gravity, the 3D film that Warner Bros is mobilizing with director Alfonso Cuaron and Robert Downey Jr., is suddenly in danger of falling back to earth after Angellina Jolie said no to a full court press and a big money offer to star in the film. It has put Warner Bros in a bind. The studio needs an actress who can hold the screen and draw an audience to an $80 million film. Much like Tom Hanks’ role in Cast Away, the Gravity heroine is the only person onscreen for a large part of the movie. Beyond Jolie, which other actress do you bet on?

Cuaron first courted Jolie when the project was tethered at Universal. She was intrigued with the filmmaker, but passed around the time it landed at Warner Bros. I’m told the studio tested or met with actresses including Sandra Bullock, Natalie Portman, Marion Cotillard, Naomi Watts, Carey Mulligan, Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller, Abbie Cornish, Rebecca Hall, Olivia Wilde, and Blake Lively, in meetings and tests that have been conducted since May. Warner Bros made a second overture to Jolie, but she just passed for a second time.

For years studios have been clueless when it comes to making big female-lead movies. The same studio that got Christopher Nolan to make Batman Begins had 10+ writers and a special effects guy working on Catwoman the year beforehand. The bad movies (and subsequent flops) caused studios to avoid having actresses as leads, and now they have a situation where only Angelina Jolie can carry an action movie.

Out of the names above i’m not sure who i’d go for, although i’d personally prefer Emily Blunt. From the looks of things they are only going for white actresses so Zoe Saldana and Halle Berry are out.

Who do you want to lead Gravity?

  • Giomets154575

    Ashley Judd , or maybe bring back Meg Ryan lol or even Michelle Pfeiffer

  • Mr. E

    I also noticed that all of the actresses listed were white. When thinking of the big box office draws for leading women I came up with a short list. Angelina Jolie, Halle Berry, Julia Roberts, Sandra Bullock, Hillary Swank, Nicole Kidman, and Kate Blanchett. For my money Blanchett is the finest actress in Hollywood over the past decade.

    My guess is that if they can’t get one of the 7 elite actresses I listed that they’d go for a younger choice such as Emily Blunt or Natalie Portman. But considering recent film history when I think of a beautiful woman who can also play a very tough character Zoe Saldana is the face that comes to mind.

    But seriously, besides looks what is the big fuss over Blake Lively????? Am I missing something?

    Honorable Mentions: Scarlett Johannson, Jennifer Anniston, Tilda Swinton, Milla Jovavich, Rachel Weisz, and Jessica Alba.

  • Mr. E

    Do you really think that half of the people under the age of 28 or so know who Ashley Judd is? If she wasn’t so busy appearing at her husband’s Indy Car Races she may have had more roles in the past 6 years so younger people would care about her.

    Meg ryan and Michelle Pfeiffer would have been great had the movie been made in 2000. Both are a little too old for a character that is worried about a child back on earth, unless her daughter’s 18 and autistic, alone in a house full of sharp objects and gasoline.

    Also an addition of Cameron Diaz to the honorable mention list.

  • May

    Catwoman would be just as bad if it had been CatMAN (let’s not fool ourselves, not even RDJ could have saved that… thing) and the same goes for other recent flops starring female leads. Why can’t studios wrap their heads about that, I will never know. As for Jolie, I think the movie could do without her. Naomi Watts, Rose Byrne, Abbie Cornish, Milla Jovavich, Rachel Weisz (hell, even Portman…) would be great.

    • UofMSpoon2

      Go out and get Katee Sackhoff from Battlestar Galactica. She’s been on TV, knows sci-fi, and kicks a**. They might want an older woman, but she should be seriously considered. Natalie Portman would be a wise second choice.