After the success of his "Lord of the Rings" movies, director Peter Jackson could do no wrong. He was beloved by the Hollywood establishment, beloved by the Academy, and beloved by fantasy nerds the world over. His "Rings" movies were phenomenal productions, telling an epic story that took a trio of three-hour movies to cover, and Jackson was rewarded with geek world canonization and permission to make
whatever dream movie he wanted. So, he followed "Lord of the Rings" with a slick, expensive, and utterly self-indulgent remake of "King Kong," a $207 million, 187-minute spectacular featuring cinema's favorite giant ape.
With "King Kong" out of his system, it was time for Jackson to knuckle under and decide what he wanted to do next. What would his new identity as a filmmaker look like, and what kind of stories would he tell? Jackson, rather unfortunately, squandered a great deal of his Hollywood goodwill by making "The Lovely Bones" in 2009, a film produced by Steven Spielberg. Adapted from the novel of the same name by Alice Sebold, "The Lovely Bones" tells the story of Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan), a 14-year-old girl who is assaulted and murdered by a local serial killer (Stanley Tucci). Susie spends the bulk of the movie in a purgatorial afterlife realm she calls the In-Between. There, she's able to frolic with other ghosts while also looking down on Earth to see how her family is coping with her death.
It may have been partly Spielberg's influence, but "The Lovely Bones" is a weirdly saccharine film, often dipping into an unseemly sentimentality. The movie will then jackknife into very bleak territory, as characters talk openly about the murder of a 14-year-old. Mark Wahlberg plays Susie's father, Jack, while Rachel Weisz plays her mother, Abigail. Curiously, however, a then only 26 year old Ryan Gosling initially signed on to play Jack, but he wound up being fired by Jackson before shooting began because he had deliberately changed the way he looked.
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Ryan Gosling Was Fired From The Lovely Bones
Speaking to Parade in 2007 (via IGN), Gosling noted that his age was an issue. He was meant to be the father of a 14-year-old, but, at 26, he could have just as easily played a 14-year-old's older brother. It seems that Gosling, in order to make himself look older for the role, began gaining weight as soon as he signed on. Gosling also grew a beard to complement his weight. Sadly, the actor didn't discuss these changes with Jackson, and the director was shocked upon seeing Gosling on the day before shooting was to begin. As a result, Gosling was fired, and Wahlberg was brought in as a last-minute replacement.
Gosling, however, wanted to set the record straight, noting that there was no animosity or hard feelings over what happened:
"I think people are making it a far more interesting story than it actually is. [...] The age of the character versus my real age was always a concern of mine. Peter and I tried to make it work, and ultimately it just didn't. I think the film is much better off with Mark Wahlberg in that role. Peter Jackson is an incredible filmmaker, and I'm here to tell you that he has things up his sleeve that are going to blow peoples' minds. I'm going to be the first person in line to buy tickets."
Sadly, not too many people bought tickets to "The Lovely Bones." The $65 million movie made about $93.6 million at the box office, which was a disappointment compared to "Lord of the Rings" and "King Kong." The film was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar at the Academy Awards, but beyond that, it was mostly dismissed, accruing a mere 31% critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 244 reviews. Roger Ebert gave "Bones" one-and-a-half stars, even calling it "a deplorable film."
Jackson has since directed the "Hobbit" trilogy and some technically audacious documentary films, including the well-reviewed (but philosophically dubious) "They Shall Not Grow Old." As of this writing, he hasn't directed a non-fiction feature in over a decade. Meanwhile, "The Lovely Bones" is currently streaming for free on Kanopy.
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