Has David Fincher found his cast for the Facebook drama “The Social Network”?
According to Carson Reeves from ScriptShadow, word has it that Jesse Eisenberg will star as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg; Justin Timberlake will play internet entrepreneur Sean Parker; while Andrew Garfield is set to portray Eduardo Saverin, Facebook’s co-creator who is purported to have been betrayed by Zuckerberg.
Eisenberg is a superior choice to Michael Cera and Shia Labeouf, who were previously rumored to be targets eyed by the film’s producers. We’re surprised he didn’t come to our minds in the first place. What has us most excited is the casting of Brit actor Garfield, an up-and-comer who showcased his talents in “Boy A.” Garfield is just starting to spread his wings and will next be seen in “The Imaginarium Of Doctor Parnassus” and Mark Romanek’s upcoming “Never Let Me Go.” We have no doubts he’d play the betrayed and presumably audience-sympathizing Saverin with distinction.
Timberlake though, we’re not 100% on. Yeah, he wasn’t bad in the few film appearances he’s made and we can see how he would fit the archetype of the hotshot entrepreneur that Parker is reportedly portrayed as, but surely, there’s better talent out there? We guess Fincher won’t accept anything less than a great performance though, so there’s probably nothing to fear.
Shooting on the project is set to begin this October on location in and around Boston and Cambridge, near the actual birthplace of Facebook on the grounds of Harvard University.
Update: Carson writes us. “Although I trust my source, there was no way for me to confirm this. So I’d still consider it a highly likely rumor.”
Update 2: We’ve got something even better. A good inside source who’s been poking us on this Facebook project lately says that yes, all those actors are under consideration and were all present for a table read with Fincher and casting person Laray Mayfield (who has cast many of Fincher’s films including ‘Benjamin Button,’ “Zodiac” and “Fight Club”), however none are set in stone, and one — who we won’t mention by name — wasn’t exactly loved by the notoriously picky director.