The “once-in-a-lifetime” role Angelina Jolie never got to play: “That has to be one of them”
Be it Lady Macbeth or Blanche DuBois, every actor has that one character they’d do anything to embody, even if it means never acting again. However, for Angelina Jolie, her dream role is much more questionable.
As one of Hollywood’s most famous stars, you’d think she has the power to star in anything she wants, but even Jolie has faced the wrath of a film falling through. Unfortunately for her, it was her dream role that never came to fruition, although I can’t help but wonder if it was for the best.
Jolie has always wanted to star in an adaptation of one of the most divisive books ever written, Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. Now, if you haven’t already raised an eyebrow, let me explain. While Rand’s book was a huge success with the general public following its release in 1957, even shifting over six million copies, it’s actually a hugely right-wing novel which spouts many selfish ideals in its philosophical approach.
Rand advocates for a particularly individualistic brand of capitalism, and in the decades since its release, the novel has been championed by many conservatives who don’t see the benefit of sharing and fostering community. The book has only become more controversial over recent years, so if you ever meet someone who claims to love Rand’s novel, or just Rand in general, I’d suggest keeping a firm distance and jogging along.
For some reason, Jolie saw the possibility of playing Dagny Taggart, vice president at Taggart Transcontinental, as the ultimate goal. She got close to this opportunity in 2007 when it was reported that she was set to appear in a film adaptation, but the plug was soon pulled on the project.
Talking to Movies.ie, the actor revealed, “Yeah, that’s definitely one of those once-in-a-lifetime roles that you think if I only do a few more movies in my lifetime, that has to be one of them”. Why Jolie was so keen to star in an adaptation of such a right-wing book is confusing, but it’s a good job it fell through because it easily could’ve tarnished her reputation.
“Being a mother is the most important thing in my life now,” Jolie explained. So, we never got a Jolie-Atlas Shrugged movie, thank God, but we did unfortunately get a pretty awful trilogy based on the novel between 2011 and 2014, which flopped with critics. It’s no surprise that the 1000+ page book failed to receive an adequate adaptation, and it doesn’t help that the politics of the story aren’t the easiest to work with, either. It looked doomed for failure before it had even entered production.
These films were not only critical failures but box office flops, too, with the final movie in the trilogy grossing just $851,690. When you can’t even break the $1million mark, you know you’re in trouble. Atlas Shrugged should never have been adapted, with or without Jolie, and it’s a miss she should celebrate.
