As the fallout from accusations of sexual misconduct continue to plague the career of Kevin Spacey, director Ridley Scott has determined to cut the actor out of his upcoming film, All the Money in the World. The unprecedented move is going to require the entire cast and crew to reshoot scenes that featured Spacey in the already completed film — all while keeping the original December 22nd release date.
According to Deadline, Imperative Entertainment’s Dan Friedkin and Bradley Thomas, along with Sony Pictures and co-stars Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Williams all unanimously chose to go along with the reshoot plans. The decision came after the film was pulled from the highly coveted closing night spot at the American Film Institute Festival. Rather than let the time, money, and hard work that went into the production go to waste because of the scandal surrounding one man, the entire cast and crew agreed that replacing him would give All the Money in the World a fair shake in theaters.
(Read: Trading Spacey: Let’s Recast Kevin Spacey’s Most Iconic Movie Roles)
Replacing Spacey as J Paul Getty, the oil billionaire who refused to pay the ransom for his kidnapped grandson, will be Christopher Plummer. Plummer is far closer in age and appearance to the actual Getty, meaning he likely won’t require the time consuming makeup Spacey utilized to portray man. Spacey apparently only spent eight to ten days on set, and though the character’s presence is brief, it’s incredibly integral to the story.
All the Money in the World recounts the true-life tale of the abduction of John Paul Getty III. With the kidnapped teen’s grandfather unwilling to pay the $17 million ransom, his mother, Gail Harris (Williams), and Getty’s advisor (Wahlberg) set out to free the boy. Scott’s thriller mainly follows the pair on their search, though both characters interact with the elder Getty.
This marks the second major production that has parted ways with Spacey since the allegations broke. Netflix has cut ties with the actor entirely, intending to finish the sixth and final season of House of Cards by focusing on Robin Wright’s Claire Underwood. For his part, Scott has had to deal with massive reshoots before, as he did when Oliver Reed died before completing Gladiator. The circumstances and scope of this reshoot are markedly different, however.
Watch a trailer for All the Money in the World — with Spacey — below.
