Ed Westwick to Join Hailee Steinfeld in ROMEO AND JULIET
Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick is going to end up joining True Grit's Hailee Steinfeld in another film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Steinfeld will play Juliet and Westwick would be taking on the role of Tybalt. Holly Hunter is also in the film and will play The Nurse. Romeo still has yet to be cast.
This new film version of the story is being directed by Carlo Carlei (Fluke, The Flight of the Innocent) based on a script from Julian Fellowes (Gosford Park, The Tourist). Honestly, how hard can it be to adapt an already written script?
The movie is scheduled to shoot in Italy later this spring and reportedly has a budget in the $15 million range. In past film adaptations, the role of Juliet has been cast with older actresses. Steinfeld is currently fourteen, which fits fine because the the Juliet is described as "almost fourteen," in the play.
As much as I think young Steinfeld is a fantastic actress, I have no desire to see yet another film based on this story.