Director Jesse Eisenberg reveals his initial plan to cast Ncuti Gatwa as a Rwandan Genocide survivor in his film 'A Real Pain' before scheduling conflicts with 'Doctor Who' forced him to look elsewhere.
Jesse Eisenberg was very purposeful in the casting of his latest hit film, A Real Pain . A buddy comedy-drama about two very different cousins who embark on a Holocaust tour in Poland in honor of their late grandmother and, in turn, confront their own tensions with each other, the movie takes inspiration from the Oscar nominee's family history, even using his great aunt's childhood home as a filming location.
To ensure it properly captured a feeling of remembrance through a modern angle, he also brought in other actors who would be natural fits for the tour group, with the most important casting being Kieran Culkin as his character's cousin Benji. However, during a self-moderated Q&A at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, he shared that he almost reeled in another big name to play a crucial member of the group, the Rwandan Genocide survivor, Eloge. In the film, Eloge is played by Kurt Egyiawan, who sports a strong resume in his own right. He's previously taken up prominent roles in Jeremy Slater's The Exorcist series as well as more recent shows like House of the Dragon, Kaos, and The Agency. Eisenberg even consulted his real friend, whom he based Eloge on, to ensure the final choice he made honored his history and the Rwandan culture. Before Egyiawan was ever considered, however, the director's main target was Ncuti Gatwa, better known as the Fifteenth Doctor on Doctor Who. Things very nearly worked out to have Gatwa join the tour group in Poland until the TARDIS came calling for the Time Lord and sent Eisenberg back to the drawing board: 'With Kurt, I tried to cast a Rwandan actor. The only Rwandan actor we met with was this brilliant guy, Ncuti Gatwa. He's the current Doctor Who, and he was going to do the movie, but then Doctor Who's schedule changed and so we lost him. And so we were looking for a Rwandan actor, it was really hard to find a Rwandan actor'
Jesse Eisenberg A Real Pain Ncuti Gatwa Doctor Who Casting Rwandan Genocide
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