Oliver Stone’s Dubbya biopic W. continues to stack on cast members like intelligent pancakes, with the latest editions being Iaon Gruffudd (Mr. Fantastic in The Fantastic Four), who’s in the final stages of signing on to play former British prime minister Tony Blair, and British actress Thandie Newton as Bush’s long-time Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. You may have heard that Rice is now in the running to be presidential hopeful John McCain’s VP running mate, so Newton’s portrayal could become that much more relevant.
Newton played it sort of mean and icy in The Pursuit of Happyness and recently starred in Run Fatboy Run. She’ll also appear in Guy Ritchie’s (remember him?) new, um, Guy Ritchie movie RocknRolla. Stone has not filled in Dick Cheney or Karl Rove but Vulture eavesdropped on a coffee talk between Paul Giamatti and the director not too long ago. The film begins shooting shortly, so expect answers to these questions. Remember answers?
W. Casting Rundown: Josh Brolin/George W. Bush, James Cromwell/Bush Sr., Elizabeth Banks/Laura Bush, Ellen Burstyn/Smoking Hot White Haired Barbara Bush.
UPDATE: HR sent the script out to four Bush biographers. Here’s one of the verdicts. Sounds amazing! “It leaves you with the impression that the White House is run as a fraternity house with no reverence for hierarchy, the office itself or for the implications of policy,” said Robert Draper, author of Dead Certain: The Presidency of George Bush. Here’s another snippet from another biographer: “This notion that [Bush's] schedule is driven by what’s on ESPN is ludicrous.” Yes! Highlight: The biographers were split on the accuracy of some eye-popping details in the screenplay, including scenes in which Bush nearly crashes a plane while under the influence of alcohol…
Discuss: If an animal had to play Condoleezza Rice instead of a human…go!
Source Link: HR
April 7th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Im not racist, but i can’t resist: Duh Hunter, the answer of course is a monkey.
April 7th, 2008 at 5:58 pm
IMO, This whole project sounds like garbage. Stone is out of touch. Case in point, World trade center. Did anyone appreciate that pile?
His track record has been horrible since 95. Need I remind you of Alexander?
- spidey
April 7th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
I liked WTC.. It lacked Stone political message and just gave us the story of true American Heroes.. I very much enjoyed it.
April 7th, 2008 at 6:43 pm
Im gonna go with a badger.
http://lauriekendrick.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/badger2.jpg
I rest my case.
April 7th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
haha, the Bush administration looks like comicbook heroes. Maybe in some bizarro universe Rice looks this hot.
Oliver Stone is still high from the 60’s it seems.
April 7th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
Sam,
The chimp would easily be Bush. Rice would be more of a seal. Cheney is the guy turning the crank on that music box Bush is tied to.
April 7th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
whats up with the gremlin?
April 7th, 2008 at 7:56 pm
this might be more effective in 10 or 20 years, instead of having a real impact it might just be seen as capitalizing on a hot topic - same problem that WTC had (aside from having a shitty script). gremlins ha! i think spencer from the hills looks like a gremlin too…holy shit i just admitted to watching that sign of the apocalypse!
April 7th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
Who is actually going to see this thing? Bush haters? If you already hate Bush, why would you PAY MONEY to see a movie about him — to remind yourself how much you hate him? Sounds sadomasochistic to me.
April 7th, 2008 at 9:03 pm
why the gremlin picture?
April 7th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
What about a Natural Born killers 2 instead of this political fantasy crap?
April 7th, 2008 at 10:16 pm
Just had to chime in on Alexander. Yes, it was a massive piece of garbage. But watched in the proper context it is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen(unintentionally of course). That scene where Hephaistion (Jared Leto’s character) is in bed dying and Alexander is giving his speech about how he can’t live without him is the stuff of legend. We all knew he was about to die but my girlfriend leans over to me and whispers”if the poision doesn’t kill him the speech certainly will”. Frankly, I can count the number of pictures that have made me laugh that hard since on one hand.
April 8th, 2008 at 1:10 am
Ioan btw, not Iaon :)
April 8th, 2008 at 2:54 am
If this turns out to be a gigantic Bush hate movie. I will personally apologize and give a big high five to Mr. (I look so much like Uwe boll right now it’s scary ) Stone.
- spidey
April 8th, 2008 at 3:42 am
Cheney could be a suit wearing walrus, Blair a ferret, Rice a mongoose, bush a gerbil who is in a wheel all the time… Anyone know why there is gremlin in the story? lol I saw that before the title and thought REMAKE!!!!!
April 8th, 2008 at 7:28 am
I view Oliver Stone movies in the same way I view David Lynch movies - as nonsensical and surreal fantasies created by a drug-addicted madman. Entertaining? Sometimes. But documentaries they ain’t. I wonder if Stone will include how the small greys helped Bush (who is a reptilian) to fly the planes into the towers by remote control.
April 8th, 2008 at 9:31 am
“Discuss: If an animal had to play Condoleezza Rice instead of a human…go!”
Hence the menacing Badger Badger Badger Badger.
April 9th, 2008 at 9:42 am
i would go to see this, knowing that everyone who is in the theater will probably feel the same way i do about bush.. it takes a certain kind of hate to pay money to sit in a theater and watch a movie that will just piss you off.. its like paying to see a video of someone beating you mercilessly, just to remind you of how much you hate being beaten mercilessly. i guess it is masochistic, but bush is someone a lot of us love to hate.