It has been revealed that Robert Pattinson auditioned for the role of Lucas Lee in Edgar Wright's beloved Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, a part that eventually went to Chris Evans. The movie was released in the summer of 2010, where it was met with a warm reception from critics and audiences alike, scoring an impressive 82 percent critical and 84 percent audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Unfortunately, the revered adaptation was a a box office bomb, grossing well under its budget. However, in the years following the film's release, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has garnered a passionate following of fans, becoming a cult classic in the process.
The movie, which is an adaptation of the graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O'Malley, follows an unemployed bass guitarist named Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera), who after meeting and falling in love with a mysterious girl named Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), discovers he must defeat her seven evil exes in order to be with her. Aside from Cera and Winstead, the film bolsters a noteworthy cast that includes Kieran Culkin, Anna Kendrick, Alison Pill, Aubrey Plaza, Brie Larson, Brandon Routh, Jason Schwartzman, and Chris Evans. The Captain America star plays one of Ramona's exes named Lucas Lee, a film star. Now that the film is celebrating its tenth anniversary, which Wright honored by bringing together the cast for a charity table read of the movie, new information about the production has come to light. One such reveal is that Pattinson apparently auditioned for the role of Lucas Lee before the role was awarded to Evans.
In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Wright discussed the exciting casting process for Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. When reflecting on Pattinson's audition, Wright said, "He did a much more intense read of it as well. Obviously, Robert is an incredible actor and someone who I’d love to work with now. But it was a very different take from what Chris did.” Pattinson auditioned for the role after wrapping the first Twilight film, which was about to become a worldwide phenomenon.
Though Pattinson didn't land the role of Lucas, the first Twilight film ended up making the young actor a household name. Following his five-film run as vampire Edward Cullen, Pattinson has starred in a wide variety of films, such as Good Time, The King, and The Lighthouse, where his performance received a considerable amount of acclaim from critics. In fact, Pattinson's career is about reach new heights, starring in Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated Tenet and donning the cape and cowl as Batman for Matt Reeves' The Batman.
In recent years, Pattinson has proven to be an extremely talented and versatile actor. However, his talents wouldn't have been the right fit for the role of Lucas Lee. Evans has a talent for playing cocky, highly charismatic characters, particularly comic book characters, and this skill was on full display in the role, making him an ideal choice for the part. Wright's recollection of Pattinson's serious reading of the part makes it easy to see his version wouldn't have meshed well with the tone of the film. Though it would've been fascinating to see what Pattinson could've done in the role, Evans' turn as Lucas Lee in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World remains a pitch-perfect performance in a film filled to the brim with them.
Source: Vanity Fair