Why Reese Witherspoon Wasn't Cast As The Gone Girl Lead

Movie-goers paying attention to the credits for Gone Girl may have found themselves wondering why Reese Witherspoon didn't wind up starring alongside Ben Affleck in the acclaimed drama. The actress served as a producer on the film, and since she is roughly around the same age as Rosamund Pike, some might find it curious why she didn't end up taking the role of Amy Dunne for herself. Now that query has been answered, as Witherspoon has revealed that it all came down to what sounds like a frank conversation she had with director David Fincher.

Reese Witherspoon was recently a participant in a Hollywood Reporter-organized roundtable that saw her seated alongside the likes of Julianne Moore, Laura Dern, Hilary Swank, Amy Adams and Patricia Arquette, and during the conversation the Academy Award-winning actress explained why she didn't end up with the titular role in Gone Girl. She noted that she was always open to the idea of playing Amazing Amy in the film, but what it ultimately came down to was David Fincher's decision - and what Fincher decided was that he wanted someone else for the part. Said Witherspoon,

While it would certainly be interesting to know the exact reasons why David Fincher didn't feel Reese Witherspoon wasn't the right fit for Gone Girl, I also completely understand why the actress might not want to go about blurting what they were. She may have ended up agreeing with the director's decision, but I imagine that was still a rather rough conversation.

Reese Witherspoon actually had a very big hand in getting Gone Girl made in the first place, as it was the company that she co-founded, Pacific Standard, that first picked up the rights to Gillian Flynn's novel back in 2012. A key part of the production company's mission statement is finding and creating more great roles for women in Hollywood, and that's exactly what Gone Girl provided Rosamund Pike. Of course, Witherspoon has also been using the company to help herself as well, as she is both a producer and the star of the new drama Wild, which has been earning quite a lot of buzz.

Gone Girl is still in theaters and has proven to be a big box office hit, with a global take of $319 million (making it the third biggest David Fincher film behind The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Se7en). We'll likely continue hearing about it in the next few months, as it stands a chance in more than a few award categories - including Best Actress.