We discussed all of the shenanigans going on with the production of Jane Got a Gun, which was supposed to be a dramatic, violent starring vehicle for Natalie Portman. Originally, Michael Fassbender was cast in a pivotal role, but he withdrew from production a week or so before filming began. Then the director, Lynne Ramsey, was pushed out (did she jump or was she pushed?), and Jude Law quickly followed (those walkouts happened within a day of each other). The role Fassy was supposed to play was offered to Bradley Cooper and Jake Gyllenhaal, both of whom refused. Ewan McGregor is now in the role, I guess, and Joel Edgerton is somewhere, and they’ve gotten a new director and his first command was “slow your roll, let’s shut down the production.”
What we should mention at this point is that Natalie Portman is not just the star of this mess, she is also the producer. This is a project she really believed in. She wanted to make this and she’s the only one holding this production together. And even then… people are still totally over it. According to Star Mag, Natalie is plucking everyone’s last nerve because she’s such a crappy producer:
Natalie Portman may seem like one of the sweetest stars in Hollywood, but those on the set of her new movie, Jane Got a Gun, say she’s a stuck-up control freak!
“She and her producing partners are literally ‘Harvarding’ this movie to death and second-guessing every decision they make,” reveals the source. “Nobody has any confidence in the project anymore. They’re all so miserable and tiptoeing around Natalie and her terrible temper.”
The root of Natalie’s ire could like in the movie’s lack of an A-list leading man.
“So many actors backed out of the movie, and she’s taking it out on everyone… first it was Michael Fassbender, then Jude Law and finally Bradley Cooper – and Natalie took that personally.”
And it seems Natalie is taking it out on everyone else.
“She is such a micromanager and has no qualms about dressing someone down and humiliating them… she’s made people cry and never apologizes. She tells everyone how to do their job: the lighting guy, the sound guy and the director. It’s crazy!”
I like the derogatory use of “Harvarding”. Because it seems like something that would happen with Natalie and her friends, like they are too intellectual to function in normal society, not to mention a film set where you actually have to make firm decisions. While I think it’s unfair to mock Natalie for a “terrible temper” (maybe she’s just bossy and men can’t handle it) or for being a “micromanager” (that’s called “producing”), I do think this is one of the most troubled productions we’ve seen in a while, and a lot of it is going to come down on Natalie because this is her baby.
