Spielberg was reportedly attached to direct before executive-producing; de Bont arrived after leaving Godzilla over creative differences. — Bill Simmons
Hanks reportedly prepared for the Bill role before passing and recommending Paxton.
Sorvino reportedly declined Melissa because she would not dye her hair. — Bill Simmons
A Garth Brooks-as-Jonas possibility is raised with explicit uncertainty about its credibility. — Chris Ryan
Ridgely former choice displaced by unnamed church-parking-lot man; donut-shop shooter alternative. — Bill Simmons
John Doe singer actor offered, performance compared to Dwight Yoakam Wedding Crashers; another dislikes ex-husband performance and would cast Bishemmy. Character Johnny Doe distinguished from singer John Doe.
The first wedding crash montage, which crosses a couple of lines, took a week to shoot, and the hosts are not surprised: they went all in, with the two singing Shout at 17 different weddings, and the first 20 minutes leave one host feeling ecstatic.
The touch football scene is unbelievable and could have gone on three or four more minutes with more button hooks from Rachel McAdams; the hot route call is a joke one host will take to the grave from playing Madden with friends, the Kennedy-compound-style house in Delaware is a real estate highlight, and Cooper's rugby shirt is fantastic.
The dinner-table scene in which Vaughn's character is groped under the table is flat-out funny and one of the better Vince Vaughn three minutes, though more explicit than remembered; the unrated version is just longer versions of the same scenes, and the hosts marvel at scrolling over the running time and finding 51 minutes still left.
Other nominations are the Will Ferrell cameo, the motorboating exchange right after the Jane Seymour scene, which one host would watch on YouTube every day, and the Dwight Yoakam and Rebecca DeMornay mediation scene that throws the fastest pitch first; Vaughn's speech from it is played.
Asked for a favorite, the opening montage is picked as the best and the signature moment of the movie.
Dobkin wanted to shoot the montage for two weeks and had it in his head to start the movie on that note; one host remembers wanting to stand up and applaud in the theater when it finally ended.
Casting what-ifs are knocked out fast because the movie cannot be imagined with anyone else; Harvey Dent is called secretly very good casting because the part needed someone who thought he was a big deal but actually was not, which is perfect for Aaron Eckhart, a shot another host, who loves Eckhart, pushes back on with a joke about a Gulf Coast condo built on Eckhart stock.
Actors who expressed interest or auditioned for Harvey Dent: Josh Lucas, not heard from much since Glory Road; Liev Schreiber, judged a little too dark and stormy for a Dent who has to start as a golden boy, though he could have been a good Two Face; Mark Ruffalo, rejected as way too cerebral and neurotic; and Matt Damon, which prompts the question of why Damon just wants to be in a Christopher Nolan movie.
Young, Courage Under Fire-era Matt Damon would have made a great Robin.
Christopher Nolan is quoted as never really having considered anyone but Heath Ledger for the Joker, which is dismissed as what they say after the fact; actors rumored for the role were Paul Bettany (fine), Steve Carell (no), Robin Williams (maybe in a Tim Burton movie, a little too ghoulish), Adrian Brody (as transcribed; 'I can see it') and Ryan Phillippe, who is said to turn up more than anyone in lists of roles he did not get and to have been in the final three for Captain America with Krasinski and Chris Evans, which usually means great publicist, bad agent.
Ledger's performance is so legendary, arguably the most iconic movie performance of the 21st century, that nobody can be put in the role; an actor rumored for it would be wise to scrub that from the internet.
William Fichtner's bank manager is said to have been offered to Dwight Yoakam, who was busy recording Dwight Meets Buck, prompting the question whether that is a Buck Owens cover record; the hosts love Yoakam as a movie actor, a legend in Panic Room and Wedding Crashers with a quiet malevolence on screen, though he would not have been right for this particular role.
