2013’s Gravity became an instant blockbuster hit, not only debuting at No. 1 at the U.S. box office but also earning Oscar buzz for its groundbreaking filmmaking techniques used to tell the story of two astronauts working together to survive after a mishap left them stranded in space.
Many fans of the movie, which went on to gross over $700 million at the box office, aren’t aware that before Sandra Bullock signed her lucrative deal with Warner Bros. Pictures, the role of Ryan Stone had been pitched to Angelina Jolie who took a liking to the part. So why didn’t she play the character in the flick?
Angelina Jolie Turned Down ‘Gravity’
In Hollywood, it’s all too common for actors to be attached to projects before things start being changed, scripts are revised, or the project is scrapped entirely.
Fortunately for this action-packed film, Gravity had a budget of $100 million to put together an exhilarating motion picture, and that’s exactly what the director, Alfonso Cuaron, did — but he did reveal that there were a few changes concerning who he wanted to be attached to the movie.
Before Bullock and her co-star George Clooney locked in their deals with the studio, offers were made to Jolie and Robert Downey Jr., but after proving to be less suitable for the male lead role, the latter along with the crew agreed to have him leave the project.
For Jolie, however, Cuaron notes that while the mother of six had an interest in the film’s storyline and appeared intrigued to sign on for the role of Ryan Stone, she later found herself caught up in a contract with another studio, which consequently permitted her from working on Gravity.
“We started developing stuff [trying] to figure out the technology. And the luxury [was] that we could try many things. And part of that was conversations with actors,” the award-winning filmmaker explained to The Hollywood Reporter.
“I had conversations with Angelina, but then she went to do one film, and then she was going to direct [Unbroken]. Something happens, you part ways.”
The other movie which Cuaron appeared to be referencing was Maleficent, which was announced by Disney around the same time it was reported she had turned down a role in Gravity.
While explaining Downey’s decision not to move ahead with the film, he continued: “It became very clear that, as we started to nail the technology or narrow the technology, that was going to be a big obstacle for his performance.
“I think Robert is fantastic if you give him the freedom to completely breathe and improvise and change stuff.
[But] we tried one of these technologies and it was not compatible. And, after that, we [had a] week that we pretended as if nothing was happening and then we talked and said, ‘This is not going to work. This is tough.'”
Whatever the reasons may be for Jolie and Downey’s decision to step away from Gravity, the film was still an enormous success, pulling in $723 million at the worldwide box office and winning seven Oscars at the 2014 annual ceremony, including Best Visual Effects, Best Director, and Best Cinematography.
Bullock, who was nominated for Best Actress at the awards ceremony, took home an enormous $70 million payday after negotiating a deal with the studio that would see her net 15% of box office revenue on top of the $20 million she was already set to earn for her partake in the film.
Taking home the large sum of money made Bullock one of the highest-earning actresses in Hollywood in 2013,
In a candid chat with Refinery29, the 56-year-old, who clearly has a thing for action films (see: Speed, Speed 2, Bird Box) explained what made her want to star in a film that solely revolves around just two actors.
“I was always longing to do, emotionally and physically, what my male counterparts always got to do. I just felt envious, every time I saw a movie that I was in awe of, and it was usually a male lead.
“So in the last couple of years, whether it was by us searching for something and turning it into a female character, or developing it yourself, you weren’t seeing it. But, in the last couple of years, things have shifted.”
Don’t feel sorry for Jolie because she wasn’t in Gravity because her deal with Disney for Maleficent was just as lucrative. She not only starred in the movie but also received a cut from backend earnings on top of being credited as one of the producers of the Disney flick.
The flick alone earned her a salary of $33 million. A sequel, titled Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, followed in 2019, though it’s unclear how much Jolie was paid for the follow-up.