The one actor Steven Soderbergh said had no limits: “It’s a thrill to witness”
Steven Soderbergh has worked with some of the greatest acting talent of his generation. Julia Roberts in Erin Brockovich, Michael Douglas in Behind the Candelabra, Adam Driver and Daniel Craig in Logan Lucky, the list goes on and on. However, nothing will ever top the embarrassment of riches that he had to work with when making the Ocean’s series.
The first movie, the 2001 remake of Ocean’s Eleven, featured the likes of George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Carl Reiner, and more. Its sequel, Ocean’s Twelve, added Catherine Zeta-Jones, Robbie Coltrane, and Bruce Willis, whilst the finale, Ocean’s Thirteen, brought in Ellen Barkin and Al Pacino. The trilogy was a major success, grossing a total of over $1 billion worldwide, and the films remain popular two decades after their initial release.
In 2018, the series spawned an all-female spin-off called Ocean’s 8. That movie, directed by Gary Ross, had an equally star-studded cast: Sandra Bullock, Anne Hathaway, Helen Bonham Carter, Awkwafina, Mindy Calling, Rihanna, and loads more. The director of the original trilogy was particularly complimentary of one member, however, the legendary Cate Blanchett.
“There are simply no limits to what Cate Blanchett can do,” the esteemed filmmaker told Female. The duo had previously worked together on The Good German, a romance drama set in Berlin following the fall of the Nazi regime. This experience clearly left a mark on him, as he was extremely complimentary of his former colleague.
“She has a phenomenal range,” he continued. “She can say more with a glance than with an entire page of dialogue, which was ideal for Lou.” The ‘Lou’ in question is Lou Miller, a former con artist and associate of Bullock’s Debbie Ocean (sister of Clooney’s Danny) who gets pulled back into a life of crime.
Soderbergh, who co-produced this new venture, had been friends with Ross for years before this project and was very supportive of his idea. “Gary Ross came to me and said, ‘What about Sandy as Danny’s sister?’ I thought that was really interesting,” he recalled. “So I said, ‘let’s take it to Jerry [Weintraub].’ And Jerry thought it was a terrific idea.” Jerry Weintraub was a legendary producer who helped Soderbergh bring his Ocean’s trilogy to life. He had cameos in all three of the films. Sadly, he passed away in 2015, so he never got to see the idea he was so enthusiastic about.
Ross, best known for writing the screenplay for Big and for directing the first Hunger Games movie, was also full of goodwill towards Blanchett. “There is no one quite like Cate Blanchett,” he said about his Australian star. “You see her assemble a character, piece by piece, latching onto these details that catch her eye as she builds them into a whole person. It’s a thrill to witness.”
Both directors are absolutely bang on the money about Blanchett. Her ability to effortlessly slip into any character is unmatched by basically anyone working today. She switches between serious and comedic at the drop of a hat and has a captivating screen presence. She embodies everything it means to be both an actor and a movie star, and it’s no wonder that Soderbergh has already signed her up to appear in his next movie, the spy thriller Black Bag, due for release in 2025.
