Who will dare to play Rupert Murdoch on the West End stage? Evidently, actors are not lining up for the part because they fear his power.
The failure to hire a big name for the Murdoch role is putting the project in jeopardy, according to the playwright, David Williamson. He told the BBC:
"All commercial productions rely on getting a cast that will attract an audience and we've found that some actors are actually scared of playing Rupert on stage.
The man has so much power and quite understandably, people - and that includes actors - don't want to offend him. He owns Fox Studios, for heaven's sake."
Williamson's play, Rupert, enjoyed a successful debut in Melbourne in 2013 and was staged in Washington DC in March this year.
Now the 74-year-old American actor James Cromwell will take on the Murdoch mantle in a Sydney production next month. He isn't worried about it affecting his future career.
"I like taking on the dragon, and Murdoch is definitely the dragon," he told Australia's Sydney Morning Herald.
"Let's put it this way – I'm not at the beginning of my career. I don't give a fuck what he does to me. If this is going to be my last shot, I think it's a good one."
Clearly, Cromwell is the man to star in the London version too. Or are there any British actors also willing to take on the dragon?
Sources: BBC/Sydney Morning Herald
