Tom Cruise in a sort of Svengali role. Imagine that.
Remember that remake of “A Star is Born” with Clint Eastwood directing and Beyonce starring that got derailed by Beyonce’s pregnancy? Well, she’s reportedly ready to go soon, so that means they better finally cast the male lead, and the latest rumor in that department is Tom Cruise. Deadline says he’s in talks to play the superstar at the top of his game who discovers a young talent, marries her, gives her her big break and then watches as her star rises while his falls.
The first iteration of “A Star is Born” was a 1932 film, “What Price Hollywood?” about a waitress who is made into a star by an alcoholic producer. That starred Constance Bennett and Lowell Sherman and was lighter than the subsequent versions. The 1937 “A Star is Born” had Fredric March as an acclaimed alcoholic actor who gives Janet Gaynor her big break. The 1954 version starred Judy Garland, so now the character was a singer who becomes a musical star, and James Mason is her alcoholic husband who kills himself when his career falls apart. The 1970s one starred Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson and was set in the music world.
Because of who Beyonce is, I think this script is supposed to bear more of a resemblance to the Streisand one (though hopefully not in quality). And after doing “Rock of Ages,” Cruise thinks he’s a rock star anyway, so he’ll probably look at this as another opportunity to flex his “singing” muscles. It’s hard to picture him playing an alcoholic for some reason, though. He tends to avoid roles where he is physically weak in some way.
They better hope Cruise accepts if they ever want to get this off the ground. Other names connected with the role include Will Smith, Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Leonardo DiCaprio, and even (I swear) Eminem, who, now that I think of it, might have been the most intriguing choice.
