David O. Russell was due to start filming shortly with Natalie Portman in the lead role. Portman (who was also producing) has withdrawn due to a scheduling conflict and Russell has therefore decided to withdraw and work instead on Old St Louis, a “dramedy” starring Vince Vaughn.
Russell will start filming Old St Louis in the spring, with Chloe Moretz (Let Me In, Kick-Ass) playing Vaughn’s daughter. Scarlett Johansson was to play Vaughn’s secretary/on-off love interest in Old St Louis, but with Russell now starting filming in spring 2011, she now has a scheduling conflict and will not be able to proceed.
Goodness. What a great big game of musical chairs. Hopefully Pride and Prejudice and Zombies will not get lost in the mix. It is such an intriguing project and hopefully Lionsgate can get a different director on board before too much momentum is lost. As always, we’ll tell you more as we hear it.
Thanks to Vulture for the story.