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Jude Law Joins Western 'Jane Got A Gun', Michael Fassbender Exits

by Ben Pearson
March 12, 2013
Source: THR

When it was announced that Natalie Portman would produce and star in a western called Jane Got A Gun for We Need to Talk About Kevin director Lynne Ramsay, we were on board with the idea immediately. We were thrilled when rising star Michael Fassbender signed on as the male lead, and when Warrior star Joel Edgerton rounded out the main cast, it was like icing spread on the proverbial cake. But apparently this wasn't set in stone, as THR is reporting a strange casting shuffle. Fassbender has exited the project, Edgerton is taking his part, and Side Effects star Jude Law has stepped in to fill Edgerton's previous role.

The story, from a Black List screenplay by Brian Duffield, follows a woman (Portman) whose outlaw husband returns home barely alive and riddled with bullet wounds. She is forced to reach out to an ex-lover and ask if he will help defend her farm when her husband’s gang eventually tracks him down to finish the job. Fassbender was to play the ex-lover and Edgerton was set as the villain, but now Law will play the bad guy while Edgerton slides over as the badass ex-lover.

There's no word on why Fassbender had to go, but it's obviously a "shame" that he's no longer with the project (see what I did there?). Even so, the new lineup sounds pretty promising on its own. We're still excited to see Portman carry a western, and having Jude Law play a western baddie should add a huge dose of charisma to the role that I don't think Edgerton would have had. He seems better suited for the strong, silent type, so it looks like everything worked out in the end. Shooting starts in New Mexico in a few weeks.

Filed under Casting, Movie News

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