After the media maelstrom that was made of all the behind the scenes drama of Oscar winner Natalie Portman’s upcoming western Jane Got a Gun this past spring, it’s rather surprising the film will see the light of day. However, after a change in director, multiple casting switch-outs and an ongoing lawsuit, the film has been given a release date– August 29, 2014, for all of us to see the fruits of the difficult labors it took to get it there.
The troubles started on the first day of production when original director Lynne Ramsay was a no-show on the New Mexico set. The We Need to Talk About Kevin filmmaker was handpicked by Portman (who also serves as one of the films many producers) to helm the story of a woman who enlists the aid of her ex-lover when her outlaw husband has a hit out for him from a rival gang. Ramsay was quickly replaced by Warrior director Gavin O’Connor to bring the movie in, though an impending lawsuit against Ramsay was filed earlier this month charging the filmmaker with owed debts over the film as well as alleging abusive behavior towards the cast and crew. The film also dealt with a roundabout in casting as original co-leads Michael Fassbender and Jude Law quickly left and eventually Joel Edgerton was cast as the ex-lover, Ewan McGregor as the villain and Noah Emmerich as the husband. Jane Got a Gun is based on an original screenplay by Brian Duffeld; with an assist from Warrior co-scribe Anthony Tambakis.
The Weinstein Company and Relativity Media will partner on the film and next summer we can all judge for ourselves.
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