Russell Crowe Might Play For Universal
November 26, 2007

At the end of last week, Universal was forced to deal with the shocking news that Brad Pitt was leaving the A-list project, State of Play, just before production was about to start and in the middle of a writer's strike. Could the studio find someone else to slide into the role and seamlessly continue production without a rewrite? It seemed unlikely and it looked like State of Play, which was to co-star Edward Norton and Robin Wright Penn, among others, might be headed to the growing pile of films on the scrap heap because of the strike. There might be a savior for Universal. Variety reported last night that Universal spent most of their holiday weekend trying to woo Russell Crowe into the role that was to be played by Brad Pitt. The big question is that if Brad Pitt left because he had some problems with the shooting script and couldn't get a rewrite, as has been reported, will Russell Crowe run into the same wall with State of Play?

Variety reported that we should know early this week if Russell Crowe will replace Brad Pitt in State of Play and it's been implied by a number of sources that if the American Gangster star doesn't take the role, this entire project could fall irreparably apart. Brad Pitt left State of Play on last Wednesday, the night before Thanksgiving, and there have already been differing reports on if it was the studio or the star that caused the rift. The main focus of many stories has been how much Hollywood may have to get used to stars jumping ship if they can't get the rewrite they want in the middle of the ongoing strike. Universal even left open the option of suing Brad Pitt, claiming he left a pay-or-play commitment, while Brad Pitt has claimed that he was forced out after he wanted to wait a bit to try and get a rewrite before production started.

It's not just a matter of script problems that might keep Russell Crowe from State of Play. The A-list actor is supposed to go into the Ridley Scott take on the Robin Hood legend, Nottingham, in March. State of Play was supposed to start shooting on November 15th, but has been delayed. If it's delayed much longer, there's no conceivable way that Russell Crowe could squeeze in a major project like Play before Nottingham.

Interestingly, the strike has left a few A-list actors without projects. In recent weeks, Johnny Depp's Shantaram and Tom Hanks' Angels & Demons collapsed due to strike-related issues. Could they step into State of Play? Variety notes that Universal wants to move as quickly as possible before Edward Norton, Helen Mirren, Rachel McAdams, Robin Wright Penn, or Jason Bateman possibly follow Brad Pitt out the door. Helen Mirren is supposed to start Love Ranch early next year.

Brad Pitt had been attached to State of Play for over a year and Variety reports that the studio worked with A-list writers like Peter Morgan, Tony Gilroy, and Billy Ray to get the script, based on a BBC mini-series, into shape. Variety notes that Brad Pitt was originally attracted to the first script by Matthew Michael Carnahan, but that he may have fallen out of love with the film through the rewrite process. Let's see how much in love Russell Crowe may be.