He sure doesnt seem stressed.
says his wife, Giannina Facio, standing nearby.
Paul, as the 16-year-old was called, was the grandson of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty.
Giles Keyte/TriStar Pictures
But Grandpa, one of the richest men on the planet, refused to pay his namesakes ransom.
When Scott initially shot the film earlier this year, Oscar winner Kevin Spacey played the hard-hearted mogul.
(Spacey, at the time, was 26.)
Joe Pugliese for EW
Since then, more than a dozen other men have alleged similar sexual misconduct or assault.
This put Scott and his film, which has Academy Award aspirations, in an impossible position.
In response, Scott made a bold decision.
But here on set, you wont find anyone complaining.
When this idea was hatched, I immediately started to feel better.
And it sends a message to predators you cant get away with this anymore.
Theres no time for pondering, he says with a grin.
Sometimes youve got to lay down the law.
Someone was like:Guess what?And thats where it began.
I sat and thought about it and realized, wecannot.
You cant tolerate any kind of behavior like that.
And it will affect the film.
We cannot let one persons action affect the good work of all these other people.
Had you been happy with Kevin Spaceys performance?Totally.
Hes a very talented man and I got on very well with him.
I had no idea.
Chris [Plummer] was always on the list.
So you find that out, butquietly, because you dont want it going around.
I flew into New York and met with [Plummer] and he said yes.
Miraculously, they were.
additional shooting days].
It made big news when it broke.
[Laughs]Yes, I know.
It was better to do it like this because once you inform the system, its everywhere.
Once two people know what its about,bang, its all out there.
Did you have to call Kevin Spacey and tell him?No.
And he didnt call me.
If he had called and said all that, do you think youd still have replaced him?Yes.
Id have still done it.
I would have said, Yes, thank you for calling, but I have to move on.
He was well-behaved on your set, I take it?Well, I dont know.
You never see that.
But you cant condone that kind of behavior in any shape or form.
Have you been surprised by all these revelations coming out of Hollywood?I think it was about time.
Harvey [Weinstein] definitely was way overdue.
There will still be a few more people out there gritting their teeth who are way overdue.
What was the studios reaction to all this?They were like, Youll never do it.
God be with you.
[Laughs]
But theyre holding the date of Dec. 22 for you anyway.Fing right.
Did you ever consider pushing the release date to 2018?No.
Why not?Because I know I can deliver.
[Laughs] I move like lightning.
Im already two scenes ahead.
If you know what youre doing, you dont need 19 takes.
You do one for the actor, one for me.
Its all planned out.
Youve gotten some of your weird ideas when youre quietly sitting, storyboarding by yourself.
After a while you learn to trust and listen to your intuition.
And I listen to mine.
You finish shooting in Rome on Nov. 29.
What do you mean?Ive done it.
Ive been shooting since Monday [Nov. 20] and in with the editor every night since then.
Everything Ive shot is already in [the final cut] up through yesterday morning.
When you directedGladiator, Oliver Reed died during filming.
Does this feel more or less challenging?Its less of a challenge, actually.
This is a real person and Im simply reshooting the scenes.
Well smooth out any wrinkles, and bingo, were there.
So whats going to be the biggest obstacle?
Finishing on time?Nope, Im fine.
Ive already started recce [British military slang for reconnaissance] on another film.
Id like to do three a year, but were going to start the next one in February.
I didnt do it for that reason, but it never left my mind.
Because you are facing a void every morning.
Theres nothing to do.
If you have wealth and no job, you sit there twiddling your thumbs and start drinking at lunchtime.
The greatest gift is being passionate about what you do.
This [gestures around the set] is a gift for me.
Im busier than Ive ever been Im in the office from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day.
And you turn 80 the day after you wrap.Yeah, but I dont think about that.
Just a bloody number.
