Netflix went completely all out, putting together an all-star cast for 'Don't Look Up', featuring the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Jonah Hill, Meryl Streep, and so many others.
Leo and Jen in particular broke the bank for their salaries on the film, it is clear, director Adam McKay wanted both of them on and in truth, their chemistry in the film is pretty darn great.
Fans were surprised that Leo took the role in the first place. In truth, he didn't make the decision overnight, it took five months to come to a definitive decision. Leo had a number of issues that needed to be taken care of but ultimately, it all came together. Let's take a look at what went down behind the scenes.
Getting Jennifer Lawrence To Accept Was A Lot Easier For Adam McKay
Familiarity plays a huge part in getting a certain role or cast in a film. Just ask Leonardo DiCaprio and his relationship with Martin Scorsese, the two are constantly working alongside one another.
It seems as though the same ordeal took place with Jennifer Lawrence and the film's creator Adam Mckay. According to McKay alongside Indie Wire, the two have a long history alongside one another, which started way back when Lawrence was a teen.
“I’ve known Jen for a while. One of the first meetings she ever did in Los Angeles after her first movie was with me when she was like 17 years old, maybe 18 years old. She worshipped ‘Step Brothers,’ so when her agent asked who she wanted to meet…they prob weren’t happy to hear the answer: the guy who did ‘Step Brothers.'”
Lawrence plays a huge role in the film and in truth, she was cast as the main character, according to the credits.
Nonetheless, getting Leonardo DiCaprio on the project was just as crucial and in truth, it took the actor a while to accept given a few conditions.
Leonardo DiCaprio Took Five-Months To Accept The Role In The Netflix Film 'Don't Look Up'
Given Leo's relationship with Martin Scorsese, the filmmaker was almost positive the actor would pass on his work. In addition, there was a pandemic taking place along with safety issues, all of this resulted in DiCaprio mulling over the offer for five months.
Once it was established that the film could be shot under safe circumstances, all sides agreed to the film. McKay was in complete shock by Leo's decision to accept.
“I think he’s amazing and I love his work, but I just thought there’s no way he’s going to do this because if I could only work with Martin Scorsese, I would only work with Martin Scorsese,” McKay stated.
“I would be Martin Scorsese’s assistant on set. So why would he do this with me? But as it turns out he really loved the script. We went back and forth on it. It was about a four-to-five-month process with us just kicking around ideas. We took a break for the quarantine, and lo and behold once we figured out a theoretically safe way to shoot this movie, he was in. I couldn’t believe it. It’s no surprise he’s fabulous in the movie.”
Leo has fans buzzing, cast in a completely different role were accustomed to, with quite the sense of humor as well.
However, it wasn't all fun for Leo, as he did object to a certain scene.
Leonardo DiCaprio Did Have A Problem With A Certain Meryl Streep Scene In The Film
Director Adam McKay was very open about the process. Not only did he speak about the negations alongside Leo, but he also touched base alongside ET, discussing what Leo was really like behind the scenes.
As it turns out, the actor wasn't a fan of a certain scene that featured Meryl Streep.
"Leo. Leo just views Meryl as film royalty … although maybe royalty is not a compliment … but as such a special figure in the history of film."
“He didn’t like seeing her with the lower back tattoo, walking for a second naked. He said something to me like: ‘Do you really need to show that?’ And I was like: ‘It’s President Orlean; it’s not Meryl Streep.’ But she didn’t even blink. She didn’t even bring it up."
Regardless of that particular situation, Leo was proud to join the film, especially given the fact that it discussed the environment, something he's been wanting to touch base on for quite a while now in film.