A few weeks ago word leaked that Scarlett Johansson was up for the lead in Alfonso Cuaron’s impending sci-fi movie Gravity. In theory they’d actually gotten a verbal agreement from her to take the role. Not so fast. Now Blake Lively is in the picture.
THR says Lively and Johansson are still competing for the part and that a decision between the two hasn’t been made. Both actresses have been testing for the role of a female astronaut lost in space. The movie’s an action flick, something Johansson proved she can handle with her hand-to-hand combat as Black Widow in Iron Man 2. I have no idea why anyone would test Blake Lively for anything this significant. She's pretty? If you’re choosing between Scarlett Johansson and one of the sisters of the Traveling Pants, shouldn’t your choice be easy?
It’s a competition I’d like to see settled by an old fashioned bout of mud wrasslin, but it’ll likely be hashed out by a bunch of lawyers and marketing analysts sitting in a room crunching numbers instead. Blake Lively comes cheaper, doesn’t she? And lately Hollywood seems to be into saving money on blockbusters by ditching big names in favor of lesser knowns with more reasonable quotes. Special effects sell movies these days, not celebrities. It may also help that the movie’s set up at Warner Bros., where Lively has just finished work as the female lead in Green Lantern.
Too it’s unclear how much actual work would be involved for whoever they cast in the film. Word is that Cuaron’s looking to pull an Avatar, ditch live actors, and render 60% of the movie entirely in CGI. You don’t need a big name starlet for that, you need someone willing to dance around wearing a mo-cap onesie. It worked for Cameron.
