June 12, 2013

Carey Mulligan turns down the role of Hillary Clinton in "Rodham."

But why? Care to speculate? Maybe a young actress who's been successful at playing glamorous when she's not clearly beautiful should refrain from having her image defined by a famous character who's only reasonably nice looking. This is quite different from the situation where the actress is undeniably beautiful and the character being played is actively homely — like Charlize Theron in the movie that won her an Oscar.

57 comments:

Baron Zemo said...

This is a role that has Lena Dunham written all over it.

Baron Zemo said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
edutcher said...

What difference does it make?

(had to)

I have a feeling she wants to see how the story turns out.

AllenS said...

The answer lies in the fact that her last name is Mulligan. BJ Clinton used to use the mulligan rule when playing golf. He also did wierd things with a cigar. Yuk. Stay away from both of them. How about Roseanne Barr for the role?

Simon said...

Maybe she's a Republican. Maybe the script is terrible. Maybe she doesn't want to risk tying her young career tied to a controversial politician: When Hopkins played Nixon, he was an established star with literally decades in the business; Mulligan's breakthrough role came fewer than five years ago.

chickelit said...

But why? Care to speculate?

Playing Sarah Palin sorta wrecked Julianne Moore's career. But least she finally whitened her teeth.

chickelit said...

This is a role that has Lena Dunham written all over it.

Too much work to airbrush out the tats.

Scott M said...

defined by a famous character who's only reasonably nice looking

Wait. We're talking about the same Hillary that just corkscrewed the State Department, right?

madAsHell said...

It's the pant suits.

Paul Kirchner said...

Carey Mulligan has a weak face. She looks like a submissive person. It's difficult to imagine her convincingly portraying a ruthless, power-hungry woman like Hillary.

Astro said...

Not beautiful?? Are you insane? She a knock-out.
Carey Mulligan in Doctor Who 'Weeping Angels' episode.

edutcher said...

Ann Althouse said...

a famous character who's only reasonably nice looking.

She's had lots of work done.

Take a look at Chelsea.

ricpic said...

When a truly beautiful creature plays a shlub it's insulting to me. To the rest of the audence, who knows? But to me it's the purest BS imaginable.

Michael K said...

How about Meryl Streep? She's about the right age and can play anybody; even Hillary.

Achilles said...

Maybe she didn't like playing a role that was an obvious lie and historical recreation. It isn't like they can tell the truth about Hilary so this film has to be a complete farce.

Simon said...

El Pollo Raylan said...
"Too much work to airbrush out the tats."

I don't understand why any serious actors get tattoos. Admittedly, I don't understand why anyone gets a tattoo, but one would think that actors, who must be chameleons, would be the last people on earth to get them.

AllenS said...

What if nobody takes the roll?

kcom said...

It's a no-brainer. The role was made for Phillip Seymour Hoffman.

chickelit said...

I don't understand why any serious actors get tattoos. Admittedly, I don't understand why anyone gets a tattoo, but one would think that actors, who must be chameleons, would be the last people on earth to get them.

Agree. And if they work hard they can even play characters with fake tattoos who hide them like Boyd Crowder on "Justified." If you re-watch the first episode, you realize that he's covering up a big-ass swastika tattoo on his left upper arm. This explains the character's dress habits in the subsequent episodes.

ricpic said...

Maybe they'll offer it to Hoffman when he gets off the heroin.

AllenS said...

Since I didn't know who Phillip Seymour Hoffman was, I had to Google the name and then use images. That was a very good suggestion, kcom.

Sorun said...

Care to speculate?

The producers wanted her to pack on some serious cellulite for the later swimsuit scene.

Kevin said...

I think she backed out when they showed her the vulva prostheses she'd need to cram her face against, a la Blue is the Warmest Color.

edutcher said...

Sorun said...

Care to speculate?

The producers wanted her to pack on some serious cellulite for the later swimsuit scene.


No, that's the big nude scene where she wins Willie back after L'Affaire Monica.

Achilles said...

edutcher said...

Sorun said...

Care to speculate?

The producers wanted her to pack on some serious cellulite for the later swimsuit scene.

No, that's the big nude scene where she wins Willie back after L'Affaire Monica.

6/12/13, 1:42 PM

Hilary must be incredible. How could you win a man back from a woman like Monica? How come they don't make porno's with people that look like Bill, Hilary, and Monica? And how boring would our politics be if we didn't elect Democrats?

Nonapod said...

If I were to speculate about her motivations for why she turned down such a role, I'd guess simply that it's just too political a role. Clinton is a highly controversial figure. No matter how you portray her you're going to be annoying large groups of people. An actress just choosing to play Hillary automatically leads people to infer all sorts of things about said actress. It's a lot of baggage to take on.

AllenS said...

BJ had to get Hillary back on board. Afterall, she knows where all of the bones and cigars are burried.

Peter said...

Hillary Clinton has strong negatives, and many inevitably associate an actor with the character played by the actor?

edutcher said...

AllenS said...

BJ had to get Hillary back on board. Afterall, she knows where all of the bones and cigars are burried.

You bet your sweet orifice.

Mattman26 said...

This is the second time today I've read the assertion that Carey Mulligan is something less than beautiful (the first was in David Denby's review of Gatsby in the New Yorker).

I'm with Astro; she's a babe and a half!

Simon said...

Sorun said...
"The producers wanted her to pack on some serious cellulite for the later swimsuit scene."

Women have cellulite. Scarlett fucking Johansen has cellulite. Is this really such a big deal. Making women feel bad about their cellulite is like making men feel bad about stubble.

Ann Althouse said...

"Not beautiful?? Are you insane? She a knock-out."

She's not clearly beautiful, which is what I said. She's been successful making you feel that she is beautiful, and she needs to tend to that project.

Look at all the pictures at the link you gave, and try to think objectively about what I am saying. She could play the mousy sidekick or the unsexy wife that gets left in the first 5 minutes. She wants to be the leading lady. She's doing well at this task.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

Carey Mulligan is totally adorable and way WAY too waifish to play Hillary Clinton. Again, for the second time in these comments, I will link my favorite scene in the movie Drive.

DADvocate said...

She probably doesn't want to wear those gawd awful striped pants.

Patrick said...

Uh, that's quite a scene there, Pants.

test said...

Simon said...
Making women feel bad about their cellulite is like making men feel bad about stubble.


Or back hair? Or are we carefully avoiding that comparison because women in fact do make a big deal over it?

Patrick said...

She's not clearly beautiful, which is what I said. She's been successful making you feel that she is beautiful, and she needs to tend to that project.

Look at all the pictures at the link you gave, and try to think objectively about what I am saying.


Looking at the pictures at the given link, I think the longer her hair gets, the more "clearly beautiful" she becomes. Probably "clearly beautiful" women can pull off both long and short hair.

BarrySanders20 said...

Good thing Citizens United made it legal to show a movie about Hillary before an election.

Because Obama and lots of leftists think that should be illegal.

Titus said...

I don't think she's beautiful either.

Cute, young features-but not beautiful.

Not Charlize Theron or Chloe Sevigny beautiful.

AllenS said...

It damned sure ain't gonna be Christy Brinkley.

ampersand said...

Angela Lansbury already played Rodham. James Gregory played Bubba and I think Laurence Harvey played Chelsea. If I remember correctly , there was a happy ending.

Kev said...

(the other kev)

Roseanne wasn't available?

Simon said...

Titus said...
"I don't think she's beautiful either. Cute, young features-but not beautiful.

Not Charlize Theron or Chloe Sevigny beautiful.
"

And none of them Karen Gillan or Jenna-Louise Coleman beautiful.

Simon said...

Or Dana Delany or Jennifer Lawrence beautiful.

Our standards are pretty warped if Charlize Theron is the yardstick.

Astro said...

AA said: She's not clearly beautiful, which is what I said. She's been successful making you feel that she is beautiful, and she needs to tend to that project.

Look at all the pictures at the link you gave, and try to think objectively about what I am saying. She could play the mousy sidekick or the unsexy wife that gets left in the first 5 minutes. She wants to be the leading lady. She's doing well at this task.


You're certifiable. Compare her to 'stars' like Julia Roberts. Renee Zellweger, or Cameron Diaz; she's much better looking than them, for example.
And re: your comment that she's clearly not beautiful. Look at these photos; it's clear that these women require a lot of work to look even half as good as her.

Actresses without make-up

dwm said...

obviously there are two kinds of people in this world: those who know carey mulligan is beautiful and those who -from some mental defect- don't
needless to say, i'm in the first group.

dwm said...
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Zach said...

Look at all the pictures at the link you gave, and try to think objectively about what I am saying. She could play the mousy sidekick or the unsexy wife that gets left in the first 5 minutes. She wants to be the leading lady. She's doing well at this task.

My favorite movie of hers, Never Let Me Go, puts her in exactly this situation. She's the natural love interest for Andrew Garfield, but gets outmanouvered by Keira Knightley. At the same time, a girl's got to be pretty fetching to play a credible rival for Keira Knightley.

I'd say the emotional vulnerability is the bigger issue. Mulligan is very good at playing a role where a cad could carelessly break her heart. Does Hillary really project vulnerability? (The question of whether she was authentically hurt by Clinton's womanising is beside the point, because Mulligan would be playing the Hillary character, not Hillary the person).

Methadras said...

This is probably Ms. Mulligans greatest career move.

AllenS said...

Don't you, you know, kinda have to look like the person you're portraying?

I doubt if Clint Eastwood would have made a good POTUS Lincoln. Arnold Schwartniger wouldn't have made a good POTUS Washington.

I could go on, but you get the idea. Just what actor, or actress could portray Hillary (named after a mountain climber)? What actor, or actress would have the ability to dodge sniper fire at an airport, while wearing a pantsuit?

AllenS said...

Movie journalist: "Hillary, what do you have to say about this story circulating about your husband, inserting a cigar in the vagina of a young intern?"

Actor playing Hillary: "Oh, I don't have time for that stuff, I'm too busy baking cookies."

I could write a whole fucking series.

Astro said...

My pick to play Hillary would be Rebecca De Mornay. She looks a bit like Hillary, and playing her would almost be like reprising her roll in Hand That Rocks The Cradle. Here's the trailer:
Hand that rocks the cradle.

Astro said...

Obviously, that was just a clip; not the trailer.

Joe Schmoe said...

Miss Mulligan probably balked at wearing the giant silicone cankle pads required for the role.

Simon said...

Zach said...
"a girl's got to be pretty fetching to play a credible rival for Keira Knightley."

Hardly. Keira Knightley is a steak knife in a dress.

Joe Schmoe said...

I have to side with Ann a little bit. I don't have levels of beauty; I only have a binary switch: are they fornicatable or not. I'd have to say I'd not consider bedding Miss Mulligan not because she isn't comely, because she is, but her visage smacks too much of adolescence. Reminds me of Natalie Portman a few years ago; definitely alluring while simultaneously making me want to gouge my eyes out for thinking such things about a woman who appeared so young.

Joe said...

Carey Mulligan is cute and has a personality. Nuf said.