http://www.avclub.com/articles/will-smith-reveals-the-real-predictably-will-smith,95376/

NEWSWIRE
Will Smith reveals the real, predictably Will Smithian reason he didn't star in Django Unchained

By Sean O'Neal March 25, 2013

When it was confirmed that Will Smith had passed on starring in Django Unchained—officially due to scheduling conflicts—most assumed that the real reason was due to typical Will Smith factors, such as not wanting to take a pay cut, or relinquish his increasingly demanded input into the screenplay, or rough up his non-threateningly sassy image. However, Smith says it was an even more Will Smithian factor than all that: “Django wasn’t the lead, so it was like, I need to be the lead. The other character was the lead!” Smith tells Entertainment Weekly, but probably doing so in that charmingly egotistical way that Will Smith has where he also laughs at it, like, “Can you believe me? I named the next 1,000 years of human existence ‘The Willennium.’ Ha ha, I’m incorrigible.”

Anyway, Smith says he attempted to get Tarantino to meet him halfway by revising his screenplay to make it more of a Will Smith movie by reducing Christoph Waltz’s role, saying, “I was like, ‘No, Quentin, please, I need to kill the bad guy!’”—even though Django does get to kill plenty of bad guys and even enjoy a complete dramatic arc, in the movie named after him. But although Tarantino didn’t see fit to change his idea completely in order to meet Smith’s demands and possibly add a fun dance-rap song over the credits, Smith has no hard feelings, calling the finished film, “brilliant… just not for me” in what is the highest compliment Will Smith can pay something without Will Smith in it.

i devour media. all day. print and online. i sit in barnes and noble each weekend with my laptop and i go through every damn mainstream and hipster magazine and site.

i'm a goddamn seismograph for culture.

people thought i pitted knight dogg against tarantino just out of the blue. nah. i didn't. knight dogg took taratino's spot in the late 90s and entered the millennium as the next great director. this net thing was still relatively new but there were a lot of taratino fans in media and definitely on usenet and aol boards (SO?) that didn't like it and had an agenda.

signs was a good movie, but the level of push back from media hipsters so over-the-top that bell just went off in my head...they wanted to bring this dude down. so, then we got the lil witty comments about the twist-endings going. the village had NO CHANCE, despite being GOOD. it was a good movie and they made it all about the twist. bill hurt's award-worthy performance got completely lost in that hate.

m. night's movies haven't mattered since. i blame him for not recognizing the audience's media-aided exhaustion was the twist-ending. he thought that if he just made a good movie, the twist thing wouldn't matter. it DOES. he can't do twist endings anymore. it's be made into a JOKE and once something becomes a cultural JOKE...it's OVER. as much as tarantino critics have tried to party off his use of the n-word and his misogyny, there has been a brick wall of "COOL" that has not allowed his incredibly obvious flaws as a storyteller to become a JOKE. you will get filibustered will the most quasi-intellectual GARBAGE if you suggest we need to do a serious deconstruction of that dudes artistic merits. it all goes into the void. jesse williams EXCELLENT analysis of django and the lack of media scrutiny and critical analysis tarantino and that film got? INTO THE VOID. it's noise. it has no roots.

but, this will smith thing. oh, they tryna bring him down. watch. just read and listen. i be reading. i be listening. i be over at ain't it cool and superhero hype reading comments...uh huh. i see. he workin wit knight dogg AND he turned down taratino!!! oh, they gonna get him...

HOWEVER...it's not gonna work. because culture SHIFTS and as much as one demo like to think they are the taste-makers, here comes the latter portion of the millennials to alter the narrative and ruin everything for snarky ass 20 and 30 year-old hipsters...THESE KIDS ARE JADEN SMITH DISCIPLES. BLACK, WHITE, LATINO, ASIAN AND OTHER. take a look around twitter and see who cysed for after earth. YUP! PG-13? YUP! JADEN BRINGIN TOGETHER FANS FROM ALL FOUR CORNERS OF MILLENIA: KARDASHIANITES, SKATORIANS, BALLERS AND POST-HIPSTER HIPSTERS.

turn down our favorite director???? QT's kewl!" But nobody wanna admit that getting Will Smith to be in a QT flick is far more beneficial for QT than anybody else. Will got NO reason to do it, at all. However, QT got EVERY reason to try and get Will to do him a solid and be in that flick tho'. That power dynamic fucks with people, I think.

And yeah, i feel you on the m night shit. I dunno how twist endings are less tolerable than bad 70s flick nostalgia. Buddy just makes str8 up dark fairy tales/comic books. I don't get the hate he gets.

And staying up on passive aggressive modern tightpant racism is a lot dog. More power to you, f'real

lol, c'mon

Literally all of the big action stars do this.

I don't know, if you're going to ask the biggest star in the world to play a slave in a film filled the n-bombs, I don't think it's crazy for him to ask to have a stronger character.

But AV Club's Newswire (and most of AV Club) is snark over substance so that's what you get.

.

*Gives the mic to Russel Simmons*

"Thank you, God Bless and Good night!"


*hops on the stage and starts break-dancing*

...are you saying he can't NOT be the star of a movie?

I think playing Django would have been better than playing J again in Men in Black III

Even Crooz did Magnolia.

This is the same cat who could have been Neo in The Matrix

It made 624 million worldwide.

If Smith finds a project he likes enough to take a supporting role, I'm sure he will. (It actually seems from the trailer like he plays the supporting role to Jaden in After Earth, honestly.)

But, like Cruise in Magnolia, if he takes a smaller role in an atypical Smith vehicle, it'll be cuz he's chasing Oscar. Cruise read that script and saw the statue. Smith saw there wouldn't be an Oscar for playing Django, so he wanted it to be a Smith vehicle instead. QT didn't want that. C'est la vie.

when you have that kind of money to still make moves based on money is a flaw
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Smith is a product. He knows what consumers want from his product. And his results are high percentage satisfaction based predominantly on Smith's sculpting of his own product.

If you mean a flaw in him as a man, I guess people could argue that for days. But there's no question that turning down Django was a business move, and one that certainly doesn't seem to hurt his product in the slightest.

Is it really a flaw for someone to make 20 million dollars and continue a money making franchise instead of taking a controversial film that he didn't love the role in so he can be praised by critics? Especially when, as a businessman, Will Smith can do a lot more with 20 million dollars and maintaining his fan base than he can with acknowledgement of a job well done. Especially when he is doing more and more producing of material that leans towards family friendly and a far cry from Django.

On a personal level I'm glad he didn't take the role since Jamie was better for it any way

I'm just saying if Will really does point to box office receipts as the sole measure of a successful film then he's lost down the rabbit hole of fame... as 99% of those that reach that level are. I've just always liked Will as a person and hoped he'd be a little deeper than that at this age and point of his career... but it's his life so more power to him.
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Reunion Radio Podcasts
http://reunionradio.blogspot.com/
Twitter @therealoldpro

He likes to do his black shit, be characters that the
black man can identify with

He turns down dumbass goofy auto hit romantic comedies
all the time

He made a BLACK Karate Kid a hit fucking movie

Seriously

He's a god

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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

>...are you saying he can't NOT be the star of a movie?

Of course not. In fact, he's not the star of Winter's Tale, which he's filming right now. It doesn't look like he's the lead in After Earth either. But I can see why, given the subject matter of this particular movie, he wanted to make sure that he was THE protagonist of the film.

>I think playing Django would have been better than playing J
>again in Men in Black III

And Will Smith disagreed. Will Smith, the man who built himself into one of the top stars, if not the top star, in the world. And after not making a movie for four years, I can see why he opted against potentially pressing reset on his brand, which is what Django definitely could have done.

>This is the same cat who could have been Neo in The Matrix

Leo DiCaprio turned it down as well. Ironically, Will Smith initially turned down Men in Black. Actors turn down roles all the time. Actors ask for rewrites all the time. Will Smith has a ways to go to match Harrison Ford in both of those.

FOH

We already know Will Smith can print money. He's in the perfect position to be able to take the occasional indie or risky role, but he's to scared to step outside of his brand.

his body of work is actually mildly diverse - pursuit of happyness, bagger vance, 7 lbs., Ali, and Hancock are all very different roles in very different kinds of movies.

It's just that cats got some kinda weird, arbitrary standard of "stretching" when it comes will smith. And I ain't even really a fan of dudes work like that.

.

>his body of work is actually mildly diverse - pursuit of
>happyness, bagger vance, 7 lbs., Ali, and Hancock are all very
>different roles in very different kinds of movies.
>
>It's just that cats got some kinda weird, arbitrary standard
>of "stretching" when it comes will smith. And I ain't even
>really a fan of dudes work like that.


All of the films you listed are uplifting, and he plays the hero...not protagonist, but HERO in all of them, even in Hancock, the film in which he supposedly plays against type.

and then ultimately killed himself(!) Bagger Vance, he was a magic negro sidekick (no need to do that again in Django. Hell, his FIRST flick he played a gay conman.

C'mon dude.

He hadn't made a film in four years. His last movie was Seven Pounds which disappointed (in terms of Will Smith). He knew that he was going to make After Earth to help boost his son's career and is a risk in itself since M. Night hasn't been knocking it out of the park recently so re-establishing his brand made more sense than taking a risk.

Jamie was the right choice for that role. Will would not have been able to do what Jamie did w/that role.

Which is where this little piece of useless information could have gone

And in fact, I believe it did

_____________________________________________________________________________
Why, you shole told me, Imaginary Internet Message Board Debate Team Champion

.

that Will didn't take the movie, but Jamie KILLED it... so whatev...

is that a Prohkorov character in the suite

The innanetz can be pwetty stoopid

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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

... but at point would I have ever read "a major movie star declined a film over creative differences" and expressed outrage the way I'm reading at multiple film news outlets around the web. Even if I was the biggest QT stan in the world... THIS IS WHAT MOVIE STARS DO ALL THE TIME. Who cares?

okay, Will passed because Django wasnt *THAT* much of a badass/passive as fuck (WHICH HE WAS)....

it happens...

Clearly, Will would have demanded that Django GET a more sizeable role in the movie (and seriously, the movie is called DJANGO UNCHAINED, yet KING SCHULTZ has the better role/storyline?! thanks QT! THANKS!)

it happens...

actors do it all the time...and yes we know Will passed on Neo in the matrix, so did leo and so did every other TOP leading A list actor in his late 20s and early 30s back then...

just like a host of actresses passed on Trinity's role too..

not every role is meant for you

there really isn't a story here.

and though I doubt Will would have took it because it would have been a brand reset (there's a reason why the edgiest shit he's done is six degrees of separation, nearly 20+ years ago, is the *ONLY* risk taking role he's done. look at his resume...he's not *GOING* there ala Christian Bale, early Brad Pitt, later in his career George Clooney, fast rising Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton, etc.)

and much of his fan base probably would *NOT* have been able to take him as Django, if Django had been beefed up in a way that worked for Will.

Django worked with the cast it got....

end of story.

except for maybe seven pounds his most recent "edgiest" work


edgy for him that is
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

>except for maybe seven pounds his most recent "edgiest" work
>
>
>edgy for him that is
>~~~~


which really wasn't edgy at all since Denzel Washington, Aaron Eckhart, Mark Ruffalo, etc. *DO* Seven Pounds type of movies IN THEIR SLEEP....

smh

I *want* Will to do more edgier work. But, he's not...and that's pretty much the truth of all this...

and he's at a point in his career where he *COULD* take on more riskier work and his fanbase wouldn't leave him...

but he won't and there you have it.

Six Degrees of Separation?
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<----Marvel I need this film to become a reality ASAP!
twitter - @auterronin

>Six Degrees of Separation?


yup. I posted that when this article popped on my facebook thread and folk started talking about it...

so yeah Will ain't doing anything (really) in the edgy/risky film area....

>>Six Degrees of Separation?

Y'all just saying SDS was "edgy" because he was a homosexual

He did that shit because he wasn't a star

He's a star now, niggas write screenplays for him

Doesn't make him any less "edgy"

Just means he ain't doing no dumbass roles

----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

How is Ali edgy? the other ones yes...but Ali? how so?

>>>Six Degrees of Separation?
>
>Y'all just saying SDS was "edgy" because he was a homosexual

that (because you know "edgy" is always dropped on any actor who plays lgbt, ESPECIALLY during oscar season (read james franco and sean penn for milk, etc.) and the fact that it was his first role and he displayed some chops that many actors don't get until *LATER* in life...
>
>He did that shit because he wasn't a star


i thought he did it because he wanted to do something "against type",e tc.

>He's a star now, niggas write screenplays for him
>
>Doesn't make him any less "edgy"
>
>Just means he ain't doing no dumbass roles
>

i agree...im fine with him and hell, *MOST* actors not doing dumbass roles...

He smashed that role and the movie was good as shit

I call that "Edgy"

----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

I liked it when I first saw it. Watched it years later and that shit did NOT age well.

His performance in general. He is unconvincing as hell.

Knowing that he refused to straight on kiss a dude stood out sorely on the last viewing.

What was edgy was the ROLE--not his performance. The lines carried him. His actual performance was hella mediocre.

He got his indie street cred just because it was "Wut? The Fresh Prince is playing a gay dude?!?"

At the time, it was leap, and good for him.

But dude has improved since then.

thats not a fair comparison

what's cruise's edgy work?

>which really wasn't edgy at all since Denzel Washington, Aaron
>Eckhart, Mark Ruffalo, etc. *DO* Seven Pounds type of movies
>IN THEIR SLEEP....
>
>smh
>
>I *want* Will to do more edgier work. But, he's not...and
>that's pretty much the truth of all this...
>
>and he's at a point in his career where he *COULD* take on
>more riskier work and his fanbase wouldn't leave him...
>
>but he won't and there you have it.

i dont really want him to
i have other actors for that frankly
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

"“brilliant… just not for me”"


he's right though
it wasnt for him the way the story played out
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

aight he's not sub par i'm kidding. cept in that bunkass ali and... maybe the drunk superhero bullshit. hated that too. hancock. that's it.


but yeah let him guide his own career. i respect people that are very... particular about what they put out. ewww @ 6 degrees though.