Why I Am Relieved Kristen Stewart Won't Be 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo'

By Jo Piazza Posted Jul 24th 2010 02:04PM

Pop-ed: An unofficial shortlist surfaced this week listing Sony Pictures' top choices for who should nab the starring role in their adaptation of Stieg Larsson's bestseller 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.'

The names on the list (Ellen Page, Carey Mulligan, Mia Wasikowska, Rooney Mara and Emily Browning) were less newsworthy than one that wasn't -- Kristen Stewart.

Some diehard K-Stew fans are up in arms (E!'s Ted Casablanca is one of them), but fans of both Stewart and Larsson's series should rejoice that the overexposed actress will probably be sitting this one out.

This role calls for a relative unknown, not someone who is on the cover of every magazine and has dolls made in her likeness. The complicated hacker Lisbeth Salander lives under the radar and the role should be filled by an actress who is similarly obscure. Any actress who brings too much personal baggage to this role will just take away from Larsson's brilliant characterization of Salander and distract the audience from the plot.

This isn't an observation that is limited to Stewart. I similarly don't want to see the adorable girl from 'Juno' (Page), Wasikowska ('Alice in Wonderland') or Shia LeBeouf's girlfriend (Mulligan) playing Lisbeth. Mulligan actually quashed rumors that she would get the role on Thursday, telling E! that she already knew it was not going to her.

I understand that some K-Stew fans are up in arms that she is no longer in consideration for the role. When I first heard her name mentioned in conjunction with the thriller, I thought the only real motivation to cast her would be to bring in the millions upon millions of 'Twilight' fans who continue to barrage the box office for each of the films in that franchise.

What K-Stew fans need to realize is that bad things happen to Lisbeth Salander. She is beset by unspeakable acts of violence in the film. The Swedish version, which starred actress Noomi Rapace (who was pitch perfect), didn't pull any punches when it came to these violent scenes. To be sure, the American version will be less graphic to suit the prudishness of American audiences, but the movie would be incomplete if it didn't address the rape and sexual abuse heaped on the Salander character. Frankly, I don't think fans of Bella Swann want to see her endure what this character must go through.

And at the end of the day, Kristen's superstar status will eclipse this movie. Rather than focus on the dark and twisted tale director David Fincher is sure to weave from Larsson's book, all eyes would be on K-Stew, her relationship status, her hair, her fashion. Kristen Stewart certainly deserves a role where she can transition into an adult actress. It's just a relief that that role won't be Lisbeth Salander.

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Tags: kristen stewart, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, twilight

Comments

(79)

Saturday 24 July

By Creyess

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I am not a huge fan of Stewart. The fact that she rarely smiles and plays a victim so much is difficult for me to swallow. She's rich, famous, starring in a hugely popular movie franchise, and allegedly dating a man teenage girls are falling over themselves for. Still, she acts as if she's miserable all of the time, and she does nothing but criticize the media that helped make her famous in the first place. Putting her in such a role would likely only bring about more of her whining and victim mentality. I'd sooner see an unknown actress take the role than a person who has gotten rich because of fans of her films but doesn't seem grateful that she has gotten there.

By ann

I couldn't have said it better myself!!!! i am so sick of the "poor, rich and famous me" act she puts on. if she is so miserable, quit making movies!

By snowmassey

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So if someone doesn't smile for you like a trained monkey
you trash them to make yourself feel better.
Oh, I get it, you are a retard.

By MP

Thank you, thank you, thank you. I have seen this talentless actress giving interviews and she tries to give off the misunderstood artist crap that makes me put my finger in my mouth to try and vomit. She should feel lucky her one-character butt ended up in the first twilight movie and made a bunch of snot-nosed tweenagers fall in love with her character. Unfortunately they pinned the character on the Kirsten and fell in love with HER. After these movies go to hell away so will she.

Sunday 25 July

By Jessica

Imust admit I didn't read the book but in watching the swedish version, my pick for lisbeth would be kiera knightly. She has to look kind of boyish.

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utting her in such a role would likely only bring about more of her whining and victim mentality. I'd sooner see an unknown actress take the role than a person who has gotten rich becau

By me

why are they remaking a movie that came out LAST YEAR? are Americans too dumb to watch international movies?

yes. americans want their own version... less violence, sappier ending, less art, more boom.

By j5kevin550

while I agree they don't need to remake it since it came out last year, is international version in English? if it's subtitled, who wants to watch words? when I have to do that, I end up watching the words and not the actual movie. and Kristen Stewart may be the biggest name currently, but Ellen Page and Carey Mulligan are not unknowns. neither is Mia Wasikowska after this year. Emily Browning and Rooney Mara are the most unknown out of those, the latter I haven't even heard of

By caymus77

Watching foreign films can be difficult because you can't understand what they are saying,the subtitles distract you from the rest of the scene, and the context can be too foreign for American audiences.
I went and saw the movie in Swedish and felt I was spending too much time reading the subtitles and missing the acting.
I am a HUGE Stieg Larrson fan and read all three books.

By dollwitchy

It's ridiculous that this movie is being re-made at all! The original is perfect and so are the actors. Noomi Rapace couldn't be a more perfect Lisbeth! I loved the books and the original movies, so who ever they pick for the "American" version is a joke!.

By RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

I'm American and I saw the international version last week. It SUCKED! They gutted the plot of the book, and made what was left of it into a flat-lined murder mystery of a movie.

By hibbidyhooblah

While the average person certainly isn't intelligent, you should keep in mind that you're average to below average and on the same intellectual level of the people you ridicule.

Monday 26 July

By amazon1967

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I just saw the movie a couple days ago and it was quite good. I dont see any reason to remake it. I guess for those who find it too difficult to read and watch a scene at the same time but I've never had a problem with that. I love foreign movies.

Thursday 11 November

By obyjanet

agree

By Nancy

And never mind the fact that Kristen Stewart cant act her way out of a paperbag....horrible actress.....

By Suzanne Thun

I have to agree with Creyess. Stewart seems to be a star that became very popular by virtue of luckily landing a spot in a guaranteed series of films. I don't think she would have made it to this level without landing that original role.
She virtually has no personality, and she looks like she is in pain all of the time when she has to appear for publicity shots or for her fans. She can barely act, and I was disappointed when they initially cast her in the Bella role because she does not seem like the Bella I read about in the books. I am relieved that she is not landing another role in 'The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo.' The less we have to see of her the better...

By georgie

Ditto!

By KR

She's nowhere near 'all that'. A one-trick pony if u ask me...just like Ellen Page.

By celia

Here. Here. They can't let her bad attitude and dreadful acting anywhere near a brilliant character like Lisbeth Salander. She should just stick to her twilight and Indie films and leave the good films to actors who know how to...well...act.

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