Matt Damon's Most Infamous Box Office Bomb Was Written For Paul Giamatti
Alexander Payne's 2017 sci-fi film "Downsizing" is one of the more notorious bombs in recent memory. Made on a budget of about $68 million, the film only earned $55 million worldwide. Its December 22 release date, as well as the pedigree of its director, dictated that "Downsizing" was meant to be a heady prestige picture, an Oscar darling for its studio Paramount. Only supporting actress Hong Chau generated any buzz, and the flick was widely panned for its inability to fully explore its unusual premise.
And the premise was indeed unusual. In the near future, technology has been invented that can permanently shrink human beings to about four inches in height. This is seen as a boon for the health of the planet, as a four-inch person is going to necessarily consume fewer resources than a six-foot person. Also, because a dollhouse uses less raw materials than an ordinary one, those of modest means can afford to move into a miniature mansion. "Downsizing" presents an intriguing sci-fi concept, and how a modern capitalist society will use it almost primarily as an economic stimulator.
Matt Damon plays the everyman protagonist Paul, who flip-flops for a spell before committing to getting downsized. Once shrunk, however, he learns that economic disparity still exists and that even teeny-tiny impoverished people are being forced to live in teeny-tiny slums. He becomes acquainted with Ngoc (Chau), and together they make an additional shocking discovery about the Earth and the future of a shrunken humanity.
"Downsizing" isn't great, but one might admire Payne's ambitions. Perhaps the film might have fared better had Paybe been allowed to abide by his original plan to cast Paul Giamatti as Paul. Both Payne and Giamatti, in a recent interview with Empire Magazine, talked about the near-miss casting decision.
Paul was nearly Paul
Giamatti and Payne had previously worked together on the Academy Award-winning 2004 film "Sideways," wherein Giamatti played a lovelorn wine expert. The actor and director have recently re-teamed for the acclaimed new film "The Holdovers." It seems that Payne also wanted to cast Giamatti as the lead in "Downsizing" but, as the caprices of Hollywood would have it, he wasn't a big enough "star" to Paramount's liking. When the Empire Magazine interviewer asked about Giamatti's casting, Payne confirmed that the role was written with the actor in mind. Giamatti noted that he and Payne discussed the project while they were working on "Sideways."
Payne said:
"It was hard, eight years ago, to get a huge budget with Paul Giamatti as the lead. That's different now, but at the time it was purely a financial decision. Not to take anything away from Matt Damon. He's a wonderful actor."
Damon had opened outsize Hollywood blockbusters in the past, and he appeared to be the more in-demand actor between himself and Giamatti. Naturally, Paramount — as risk-averse as any studio — preferred the Oscar-winning "big star" over the still-celebrated Giamatti. Luckily, the actor was hardly bitter about being passed over for Matt Damon, jokingly saying: "He's the go-to guy if you can't get me, by the way."
Both Damon and Giamatti have remained prolific and excellent all the while. They tend to play dramatically different kinds of roles, but they are both capable enough to take over for one another in a pinch. Transpose them between any two respective roles, and consider.