Ridley Scott talks about replacing Kevin Spacey in "All the Money in the World"
When news broke that Kevin Spacey was accused of sexual misconduct by numerous men in late October and early November, Ridley Scott suddenly had to make a difficult decision. Spacey was playing mogul John Paul Getty III in Scott's latest film, "All the Money in the World," and they had already shot his scenes. On Nov. 8, Scott announced that he would reshoot all of Spacey's scenes with a different actor in the role and still make the Dec. 22 release date.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Scott says he is still on track to have the movie in theaters by the original release date. The role has been recast with Christopher Plummer replacing Spacey; Scott said that Plummer was always on his short list for the role. Scott called back co-stars Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg to London and Rome to reshoot scenes with Plummer between Nov. 20 and Nov. 29, Thanksgiving week.
Scott explained that leaving Spacey in the film was not an option.
"I sat and thought about it and realized, we cannot," he told EW. "You can't tolerate any kind of behavior like that. And it will affect the film. We cannot let one person's action affect the good work of all these other people. It's that simple."
Scott said that though Spacey never called him to apologize, it would not have made a difference, saying, "I'd have still done it."
In the interview, Scott seems almost excited by the challenge of the film's quick turnaround. When the interviewer pointed out that TriStar is still holding the Dec. 22 release date for the film, Scott responded, "F***ing right."
He boasted, "Because I know I can deliver. I move like lightning ... After a while you learn to trust and listen to your intuition. And I listen to mine. I trust it."
Williams said she was happy to reshoot the scenes.
"When this idea was hatched, I immediately started to feel better," she told EW. "This doesn't do anything to ease the suffering of people who were all too personally affected by Kevin Spacey, but it is our little act of trying to right a wrong. And it sends a message to predators — you can't get away with this anymore. Something will be done."
"All the Money in the World" is based on the true story of the 1973 kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III, grandson of J. Paul Getty. The oil tycoon refused to pay the ransom for his grandson. The film centers on the teenager's mother, played by Michelle Williams, as she works with a former CIA operative (Wahlberg) to find her son.