Digital Star Is Born, SAG is Not Impressed

By Jack August 15, 2000 1:13 PM

New Zealand-born writer/director Andrew Niccol who wrote and directed the box office hits "Gattaca" and "The Truman Show" has informed a startled Hollywood that he is taking the unprecedented step of casting a computer-generated ing?nue opposite Al Pacino in his new movie because auditions for flesh-and-blood talent came up short.?

The feature, "Simone," which Niccol also scripted, is due to start shooting this fall.?

Niccol originally auditioned several promising names for the role of young, unknown actress confronting sudden fame.?Subsequent open casting calls were also held in several U.S.?cities, with newspaper advertisements specifying "a beautiful woman aged 18 to 28, white or mixed race."

Niccol ended up opting for the increasingly popular CGI technology once his search flopped, according to The Hollywood Reporter.?

Niccol could not be reached for comment, but associates said his technological leap was inspired by a sneak peak at the computer-generated effects in "Final Fantasy," a movie based on the Japanese video game that opens next summer.?

Similarly lifelike facsimiles were used for "Gladiator's" Roman Coliseum crowd scenes, and also surfaced in last year's "Eyes Wide Shut," legendary director Stanley Kubrick's erotic finale, after the film's orgy scenes raised the specter of an NC-17 rating.?

Pacino did not return calls, and some industry insiders expressed outrage at Niccol's decision.?

"They better have lists of hundreds of girls he looked at, unless they want SAG [the Screen Actors Guild] to come down on him," said one.?

But SAG spokesman Greg Krizman dismissed Niccol's stance "as a one-time publicity ploy.?Whoever the gal turns out to be, she won't develop a following.?

"We have plenty of actors and actresses out there who wonder about computer-generated directors."