It’s hard for someone as seasoned and familiar as Ridley Scott to genuinely surprise us, but his swift action in the wake of the Kevin Spacey allegations is a genuine feat of filmmaking.
All the Money in the World, a dramatization of the kidnapping of John Paul Getty III, was set for a strong release and an awards season run before the news dropped. However, instead of letting Spacey’s appearance as oil tycoon J. Paul Getty derail the film, Scott announced that Spacey would be replaced by Christopher Plummer. The December release date couldn’t change, so the film’s team was reassembled over the week of Thanksgiving and the last-minute splice-and-dice occurred.
The film will never be able to remove itself from the scandal, but this decision means that it will land on the right side of history. People still remember the hoops Scott jumped through when Oliver Reed died while filming Gladiator, and the same kind of mythology is already forming around the costly choice to replace Spacey (the reshoots had a reported $10 million price tag). It was a firm stand against the ever-spreading scandal, and Scott and company aren’t mincing words when they talk about it.
So the path is (sort of) cleared for what is an otherwise intriguing film. As the kidnapped boy’s mother, Michelle Williams is set for her most high-profile role in years, and Mark Wahlberg is comfortably cast as the man helping her get the boy home safe. It’s Scott’s signature blend of prestige and entertainment, and we’ll still be able to enjoy it as scheduled.
All the Money in the World is directed by Ridley Scott and stars Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Williams, and Christopher Plummer. It will be released in the U.S. on December 22nd, 2017 and in the U.K. on January 5th, 2018. For international release dates, click here.
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