NO ONE IS ALONE AT THIS READING: No one is yet confirmed, but BroadwayWorld alleges that they have a list of the cast that did the
table reading of the screenplay for Into The Woods earlier this week. Some pleasant surprises (Nina Arianda and James Corden as the Bakers?), some exactly what you'd expect (Meryl Streep allegedly in talks for the Witch, Anna Kendrick as Cinderella, Patrick Wilson and Cheyenne Jackson as the Princes), and a surprising number of non-movie names, perhaps in the thought that Meryl and the concept are enough to sell tickets.
I think I'm most excited about Allison Janney.
ReplyDeleteMegan Hilty! Yay, give that woman something to do besides 'Smash!'
ReplyDeleteI'd rather see Donna Murphy than Meryl Streep as the Witch. She was fantastic in Central Park.
ReplyDeleteSo a friend of a friend was at this reading yesterday. Supposedly, the following people are confirmed for the film: Corden/Baker, Kendrick/Cinderella, Allison Janney/Jack's Mom, Patrick Wilson/Prince, and Michael McGrath/Mysterious Man. There are some rumors about other people involved: Meryl as Witch, Johnny Depp as Wolf, and possibly Amy Adams as Baker's Wife. However, the person who saw the reading said that Nina Arianda completely stole the show as the Baker's Wife. He said that there wasn't a dry eye in the house when she finished her last number and everyone cheered for her at the end. I'm hoping this means that they'll have her do the part. She did get good reviews for "Midnight in Paris," so she isn't untested onscreen. Sondheim and Lapine were both at the reading. Ivan Hernandez has a beautiful voice and was very good as the Wolf in the park this summer. I think Depp would be great, but I kind of hope they keep Hernandez.
ReplyDeleteNina ought to be a big big star--she's immensely talented and gorgeous--but I'm wondering if there might be concerns she's not a big enough name, though Kendrick now has some star capital.
ReplyDeleteIf you have Kendrick, Meryl, and Depp, they probably don't need another big name for Baker's Wife. Though going with two Broadway names for the Baker/Baker's Wife is a pretty gutsy move (one I completely approve of, but still).
ReplyDeleteWas re-watching Win Win on HBO the other day and saw her name in the credits - didn't make the connection when I saw her on the Tonys.
ReplyDeleteI'll wait until actually seeing Les Mis before saying for sure, but as of now I'd imagine the "live on-set singing" gambit would work really well for this as well.
ReplyDeleteYou're not looking forward to her hiring a hitman in the upcoming season of Smash? And by hitman, I mean Katherine McPhee gets cement overshoes.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't familiar at all with Nina Arianda until Win Win but her (3?) scenes made me go "Woah, who is THAT?"
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