Disney Stopped Andrew Scott From Having A Larger Part In Saving Private Ryan
"Saving Private Ryan" is known for having a brilliant ensemble cast filled with well-known names, even in the smallest of roles. The Steven Spielberg-directed film housed many young performances from up-and-coming actors as armies of soldiers due to the epic scale captured in the war film. For instance, Vin Diesel's brief role tends to stand out because of his current status as a movie star. In that case, Diesel has a few lines to say and an important sacrifice before biting the dust. But there are a few appearances that still go under the radar these days, namely one that is quite difficult to spot if not pointed out by the actor himself. I literally had to squint at my screen to find him.
As the headline suggests, "Fleabag" star Andrew Scott has a pretty small part in "Saving Private Ryan." For the uninitiated, Scott plays a soldier in the opening D-Day sequence but acts more like cannon fodder with no lines or significant screen time. However, that was not always going to be the case. Before getting reduced to being an extra, Scott played a slightly larger part in the film and had a tragic death. Thanks to Disney, the world was robbed of having Scott on the big screen before his rise to stardom on television.
'Still an extraordinary experience'
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Scott detailed his bittersweet experience on the set of "Saving Private Ryan," revealing the reason why he was barely in it:
"Saving Private Ryan was shot in the south of Ireland in 1997. I got cast in this, five or six lines, this guy who was about to lose his life. It was beautiful. And I was filming a Disney film at the time called "Miracle at Midnight," and they wouldn't let me out to be in this Spielberg movie. I was absolutely devastated that I couldn't do this film. And so they ended up giving me this much, much smaller part where Tom Hanks basically rolled over me, and I just [muffles voice] 'I'm so sorry about that!' And the completely indistinguishable line that I had. But it was still an extraordinary experience just to be on this extraordinary, long stretch of beach."
Scott's other acting commitment is nowhere near as culturally relevant as "Saving Private Ryan," but it also took place during World War II. The culprit in question, "Miracle at Midnight," was a TV movie by Disney about the rescue of Jewish people during the Holocaust. I'm not sure if Scott was actively seeking out roles with World War II in mind, but it's a pretty interesting coincidence nonetheless.
Although it would never be a meaty role, at least Scott would have been easier to spot (I spent far too long looking for him for this piece, FYI). Perhaps if Scott had kept that bigger role, he could've given creative suggestions to Spielberg as well.