Baz Luhrmann has taken his time to figure out what he wants to do with this Great Gatsby adaptation. He bought the rights to the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel in 2008. Luhrmann began to workshop the project with a number of A-listers late last year. He mulled long and hard over all of Hollywood’s prettiest starlets for the role of Daisy, and wondered if Daisy might look more fetching in 3D. Throughout the process, Lurhmann never officially decided The Great Gatsby is his next project, saying at the DGA Awards, “I gotta make a decision in three days’ time.”
A fortnight (and then some) has passed since that statement, and THR has the verdict. Luhrmann will film The Great Gatsby in 3D this August in his hometown Syndey Australia. Leonardo DiCaprio will play Jay Gatsby, and Carey Mulligan has been offered the role of Daisy Buchanan. Details after the break.
DiCaprio has been involved since the beginning of the workshopping process, so it’s no surprise to hear of his official involvement. Likewise, Mulligan has long been the frontrunner to play Daisy, and Luhrmann even gave her the role over the phone. However, Mulligan is (with good reason) a very busy young actress, and already had to drop out of Stoker earlier this year. Mulligan has the offer on her table. On one hand, this will surely be a very high profile release. On the other hand… this adaptation makes me nervous.
1) There’s always the looming question of whether The Great Gatsby can be successfully adapted for the screen. It’s been attempted, but never conquered.
2) There are many wonderful adjectives you can use to describe Luhrmann’s work. “Consistent” is not one of them.
3) And 3D? What?
This has the potential to be great, especially if Mulligan signs on. It also has the potential to be mediocre, like the other adaptations. And alas, this adaptation of The Great Gatsby has the potential to be absolutely awful.
The Great Gatsby will be the first live-action 3D film shot in New South Wales. The 17-week shoot will take place at the same Fox Studios in Sydney where Luhrmann filmed Moulin Rouge! and (naturally) Australia. Warner Bros. is teaming with Luhrmann’s Bazmark Films to produce the adaptation.
Here’s the synopsis for Fitzgerald’s book:
The mysterious Jay Gatsby embodies the American notion that it is possible to redefine oneself and persuade the world to accept that definition. Gatsby’s youthful neighbor, Nick Carraway, fascinated with the display of enormous wealth in which Gatsby revels, finds himself swept up in the lavish lifestyle of Long Island society during the Jazz Age. [Barnes & Noble]
Kevin Feige Gives Advice for JUSTICE LEAGUE Movie; Says to Have Confidence in the Characters and Source Material
Chris Evans Talks THE ICEMAN, SNOWPIERCER, CAPTAIN AMERICA 2, THOR 2, AVENGERS, His Marvel Contract, Future Roles, and More
Could Warner Bros. Turn Unproduced Screenplays into DC Animated Films? Geoff Johns Says it’s a Possibility
Listen to a Full Track from Hans Zimmer’s MAN OF STEEL Score
Producer Bryan Burk Says STAR WARS: EPISODE VII Will Likely Start Filming Early 2014
I always used DiCaprio as my default Gatsby. He fits the role well. I hope they do the book justice.
i hope to read the book before they start to shoot. i just borrowed it from my friend.
on the movie, so maybe this means “The Wolf Of Wall Street” won’t be Scorsese’s next project. that’s great news. the sad news is that, while Silence will finally be made, Day-Lewis won’t be available.
i’m a big fan of DiCaprio. it’s a matter of time before he finally wins the oscar. he keeps going for interesting choices that challenges himself as an actor(something Depp forgot, and Downey might fall into, but then Downey has a film with PTA). Mulligan is also a big fish on this project. with ‘An Education’, she showed she is a big talent. with ‘Never Let Me Go’, she showed the second best performance by an actress in 2010. i was stunned at how great she was on that movie.
never been a fan of Luhrman. i was very annoyed with his Romeo and Juliet, and Moulin Rouge irritated me. but i’m planning to watch Rouge again just to see if it was just a bad day when i saw it.
Amazing book, and Leo is perfect, but I really don’t know about Mulligan, she seems like she has to much soul, and Daisy is a awfully, awfully soulless character.
Would love to see Guy Pierce as Tom.
A great American novel, by one of America’s greatest writers, and it’s going to shoot in Australia? Benefiting foreign film workers?!!! I hope it flops. And with Baz Luhrmann directing – highly overrated and sure to muck it up – I’m sure it will.
Because America always films movies set in other countries in that country and no one some Hollywood lot? Besides their are two versions of Gatsby that have been shot in the US.
I thought Mulligan was already signed. And why are they shooting this in 3D–the director’s not including musical numbers are some such nonsense, is he?
If I understand correctly, Luhrmann told Mulligan the role is hers if she wants it, and she does want it. But there is no contract yet.
Maybe 3D will help draw the audience into that world — lush sets and pretty people in pretty costumes and all that. I’m skeptical.
Why will it be released in 2013?
I think I meant to type 2012. But either way it’s guesswork, so I took it out. Sorry for the confusion.
Why 3-D? Nevermind…stupid question. Its for those who do not know better. LOL
quite in agreement. 3D is the worst thing that happened to good filmmaking. although I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy watching a film about ocean life in IMAX 3D when I was 9. it works for some things but not for others, and The Great Gatsby is NOT it.
Not that there isn’t some artistic value to 3D, but I think The Great Gatsby is principally a brilliant story. The visuals are never going to be an integral part of it.
Am I the only one that really thought the book, and the original movie was boring as hell? I am sure I will be ridiculed, but seriously, I REALLY didnt enjoy the book. Put me to sleep more than a tylenol pm.