I don’t know anything about her background, but at least Amy Adams looks like might have at one time not lived in the San Fernando Valley and experienced some life outside of a mall. She can also convey Lois Lane’s spunk without completely getting on my nerves. All in all, a very promising casting choice. Most of all, though, the choice shows the director’s confidence in his lead actor to hold his own. Adams is a star in her own right with real charisma.

Superman’s going to have his hands full.

The Los Angeles Times:

The 36-year-old star got the news on Sunday from director Zack Snyder, who phoned her from Paris, where he was promoting his just-opened film, “Sucker Punch.” There had been a crush of Hollywood interest in the lead female role in the Warner Bros. project but Snyder said that after meeting with Adams, she was the clear choice to take on a character that dates back to 1938 and has long represented the strong, professional woman who can hold her own against any man – even if he can leap tall buildings in a single bound.

“There was a big, giant search for Lois,” Snyder said. “For us it was a big thing and obviously a really important role. We did a lot of auditioning

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Will this be the beginning of the end of Hollywood’s openly discriminatory hiring practices?

A casting manager working on The Hobbit has been sacked over allegations a British actress was turned down for a role in the film because of her skin colour. …

A crew member also reportedly published a newspaper advert calling for extras with “light skin tones”.

A spokesperson for Peter Jackson insisted no such instructions had come from the director’s Wingnut production company, and a representative has now confirmed a casting agent has been fired over the scandal.

The rep says, “No such instructions were given, the crew member in question took it upon themselves to do that and it’s not something we instructed or condoned… The crew member in question has been dismissed… It’s something we take very seriously.”

There is no more of an openly discriminatory industry than show business. Casting offices and agents look for particular “types” every day. This is what they’re hired to do. Discriminatory hiring practices based on looks, age, gender, and race are the norm in Hollywood, not the exception. You can be too fat, too old, too blond, too dark, not pretty enough, not buff enough, or just plain “wrong” for reasons that have nothing to do with talent and that no one can or will explain. This town is buried in stories of people who knocked the audition out of the park but were told they weren’t the right “type.” Which means they were qualified for the job, they just didn’t physically appeal to the boss or bosses; director, producers or a combination of both.

This is the only industry in America that constantly gets away with not giving the most qualified person the job — that openly hires bad actors and actresses based on their physical attributes and/or nationality as opposed to their talent. For purely money-making purposes, movies and television constantly target particular demographics. Frequently a role will be written in order to specifically appeal to a particular race or country in the hopes it will drive more box office or higher ratings.

There’s also a helluva lot of nepotism in show business. Drew Barrymore, Colin Hanks, Sofia Coppola, Nic Cage… And that’s just the beginning. It’s amazing how many people currently working at every level of the industry got their start thanks only to an established relative.

Obviously, if any other industry employed the same hiring practices as Hollywood they would be shut down by the Justice Department for discrimination. Imagine Wal-Mart trying to make a case that in one particular store they discovered that only hiring young, pretty, Caucasian blonds increased profits by 5% and at another store, hiring young, buff, Latino men resulted in the same. Think they would be allowed to stay in business long.

The best rule of thumb when it comes to understanding Hollywood’s behavior is to watch what they accuse others of doing — especially Big Business — and you can bet that’s exactly what they themselves are doing.

Nepotism, sexism, ageism, racism, lookism… You got an ism, Hollywood’s practicing it. And getting away with it.

I recently read Apocalypse Near? Liberal Actresses Line Up to Star in ‘Atlas Shrugged’  by Pam Meister and wanted to offer the perspective of someone who has experience in casting. The post told of Julia Roberts and Angelina Jolie having an interest in the role of Dagny Taggert. It was offered up, and several commenter’s mentioned that they feared Julia Roberts might change the script to reflect her liberal viewpoint. I don’t really think that should be a concern because many times certain actors are mentioned only to create buzz for a project, or to get their name out there, or both. I believe such is the case with Julia Roberts in this story.

So, for the sake of example here, let’s use Angelina Jolie, the suspected front runner. When casting at the Hollywood level, Angelina’s political leanings, opinions, beliefs and practices would not be considered. Assuming that the writer plans to stay true to the book, and the director is on the same page, an actress will not get a say in rewrites. Some actresses can demand rewrites as part of the negotiations, but such instances are rare. Normally, if she will not “play by the rules,” she does not accept the role.

This was the case when Jodie Foster was sought to reprise her role of Clarice Starling in Hannibal. Speculation was she declined the role because she didn’t like how the character in the sequel had been written.

If Angelina accepts the role it is her job to portray the character as conceived and written by the screenwriter, and defined by the director’s point of view. Of course she and director will have discussions throughout the filming process, but it won’t be to change the “bend” of the script. Whether it’s an actress being paid scale or Angelina’s $20 million paycheck, she is a hired professional first; and is expected to do her homework, get inside the character’s world and get the job done without her political persuasions seeping through.

Case in point: Calista Flockhart is a pretty well know, out-spoken liberal, and whether you like her or not, an outstanding actress. On Brothers and Sisters she plays Kitty Walker, a prominent conservative with a lot of zeal. Drawing on her technique and expertise she portrays this character passionately, with believability and depth.

Now with that said, if I were casting the movie I might consider one of the following strategies:

#1: Since the book already a has a following and is now back on the bestseller list, the movie has a built in audience. You don’t really need to cast the Hollywood heavyweights. So, let’s forget about Angelina and mainstream Hollywood for a moment and cast it with no names. OK, maybe the talented lesser known named Hollywooders. Then let’s go to Broadway where the cream of the crop actor’s are, as well as regionally where you’d be sure to find some amazing undiscovered talent. Assuming the screenplay follows the book and the director respects the material, casting stage actors is the cherry on top of this scenario. 

Mel Gibson went the way of casting the non-mainstream powerhouse actors when he cast The Passion of the Christ. The most recognizable Hollywood player was Jim Caviezel. Mel did this because he felt the story was the big star and he wanted it made true to his vision. He even started filming without outside funding or a distributor. The story and the buzz made Passion the #12 all time grossing film domestically, #3 all time grossing for the year of 2004, and #1 top grossing “R” rated film of 2004. Unfortunately it was only nominated for three Oscars: cinematography, make-up and original score. (Oh, please my nerves!) The nominations were another fatality of liberal Hollywood, much like The Dark Knight.

#2: Being a conservative and a Christian (oh yes, my friends, a double whammy against me in this business), we could do politically evangelical casting. Bring on the bitter, angry, Obama idolizing movie stars. From the table read, to rehearsals, to shooting, these liberal performer’s might start questioning their politics. Let’s take into account a movie can take between two and a half to five months to shoot, sometimes longer. That gives actors a lot of time for introspection. Furthermore, most of their time on set will be spent alone in their trailers memorizing Ayn Rand’s words and living in the world she and the director created. As the filming continues, perhaps the actors start to see the parallels between the book and the Obama agenda. At this point, with the gentle prodding by the material and its execution, the actor’s would start questioning their political beliefs and allegiance. Then once the seed of conservatism is planted, the stage is set for a sea change in the National Consciousness. Ah, one can dream!

Alas, since Hollywood is Hollywood, I think the big name, raging liberals will get the job. But fear not, whether a movie star or unknown liberal is cast, I think it’s safe to say the material will lead to a “crisis of liberal belief.” This is a good start.