Oliver Stone Wanted Christian Bale to Play Bush in 'W.'

Monday

22Sep2008

Oliver Stone Wanted Christian Bale to Play Bush in 'W.'

Monday, September 22, 2008 at 1:24AM

Not that I think Josh Brolin will do a bad job, but I would've been very interested to see this other casting choice for Oliver Stone's W. Of course, with Stone as the source, you should take it with a grain of salt. He's been known to stretch a truth here and there.

Stone told GQ.com that they went through a lot of actors before settling on Brolin, including one rather surprising choice.

"I needed a star [to get financing]...and Josh Brolin was not a star. Originally I went for Christian Bale. We did some rigorous prosthetic tests and spent a lot of dough - thousands and thousands of dollars - and then Christian said, 'I just don't feel like I can do it.' I met Josh and liked him. He was more rural Americana. But man, he was scared shitless."

But casting Brolin was a key to gathering the rest of his ensemble, and so was the willingness of the director and star to work really cheap. "We ultimately got good actors willing to work for no amount of money," says Stone. "We gave them points on the back end. Josh and I set the example. We took nothing. I actually took below the Directors Guild minimum."

If you've followed our coverage of the movie at all, you know a major sticking point here at The Big Picture is that the trailers and posters for the film, which opens October 17th, appear to be making Bush out to be President Tug Benson from Hot Shots.

Ideally, in our opinion, a film dealing with such a volatile time in American history might have a little gravity, and Stone addresses the tone of his film, saying, "Well, it has to be done with an ebullience and a certain fun, because the guy is goofy. He’s a goofball! And I think he endeared himself to people because he couldn’t get anything right."

I dunno; maybe the satire is in the right place, but that explanation doesn't raise my expectations.

Colin Boyd |

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