Caffeinated Clint
Did Robert Downey Jr just find out what a big fan of “The Wizard of Oz” Ricky Gervais is or something!? (A joke for the few that watched the Globes) For some reason, the recovered Pick-Up Artist has dropped out of Sam Raimi’s “Oz” prequel, “Oz : The Great and Powerful”. Hmmm..
And to think that just a few short years ago Downey was slumming it in the likes of “In Dreams” and “The Shaggy Dog”. Now, he’s about to pick and choose projects like they were mushrooms at Safeway. More than that, Downey’s becoming rather famous for attaching and disattaching himself from projects – as was the case with “Cowboys and Aliens” and also “Megamind”.
Downey has been onboard Raimi’s “Oz” for quite some time, not long enough that a laborious development phase spurred the actor to exit.
Disney is now hoping to lure their go-to guy Johnny Depp to the film. Thing is, Depp is incredibly busy – what with “Pirates 4”, “The Lone Ranger” and “Dark Shadows” all occupying a large chunk of his 2011 diary. If he can find the time, and if Disney are willing to shuffle some dates, it’ll likely be Depp doing time with the Munchkins.
Personally, I think Downey is a better pick for ‘The Wizard of Oz’ anyway – – that kind of quirky, odd yet likable character is his specialty. So long as he holds the fuddawacken, it should turn out OK too.
The Hollywood Reporter has the whole story…
