Director David Fincher and writer Aaron Sorkin were a match made in heaven when it came to the dialogue-heavy THE SOCIAL NETWORK. The two filmmakers reteaming for a Steve Jobs biopic seemed like a home run until Fincher left citing creative differences. One demand that was on his list to be met was the casting of Christian Bale for the lead role. Eventually Danny Boyle (SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, TRAINSPOTTING) stepped up to helm the picture and word on the street was that Bale was back in the running. Looks like it's a done deal as Aaron Sorkin was goodly enough to talk a bit about the film and the casting of Bale.
Aaron Sorkin on Christian Bale playing Steve Jobs:
What we needed was the best actor. It's like the NFL draft. There are some people who make a science [out of it]. We needed the best actor on the board in a certain age range and that’s Chris Bale. I couldn't be more excited. He really is a phenomenal actor. He didn't have to audition. There was a meeting. The role is an extremely difficult role. He has more words to say in this movie than most people have in three movies combined. There isn't a word or frame that he's not in. There's a tremendous amount of language. It’s an extremely difficult part and he is gonna crush it.
I don't think there's any doubt that Bale completely dives into any role he takes on, so given Sorkin's comments about the structure of the film, I'm wondering if that's still the plan and how Danny Boyle will choose direct those scenes. Given 127 HOURS, he's certainly no stranger to keeping things interesting in one location for a great period of time. When Fincher left the project, I was a little dismayed, but I'm confident that with Boyle and Bale on board, this picture will be just as good.
With the lead now chosen we can probably expect this flick to hit theaters around award season sometime late next year.