Peak gay villainy: 20 titillating facts about ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’
The Talented Mr. Ripley—directed by Anthony Minghella and adapted from the Patricia Highsmith novel of the same name—tells the sordid tale of Tom Ripley (Matt Damon), a queer con man who befriends rich couple Dickie (Jude Law) and Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow) in Italy as part of a scam before *spoiler alert for a 25-year-old movie* killing Dickie and assuming his identity.
The critically acclaimed film (which also stars Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman) was a hit for its excellent performances and sexy turns by Law and Damon.
And it’s about to have another moment with Netflix’s upcoming eight-episode limited series adaptation Ripley starring queer actor Andrew Scott—who’s barely finished wiping the sweat from his brow after All Of Us Strangers. With the movie celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, here are 20 fascinating facts about The Talented Mr.
Ripley.View Full PostAccording to Vanity Fair, an early cut of the film left audiences scratching their heads when Ripley kills Dickie, so Minghella recut the opening to include more Hitchockian vibes and a song by Gabriel Yared sung with Sinéad O’Connor, “Lullaby For Cain.”View Full PostRoman Polanski, Mike Nichols, and Bernardo Bertolucci were all offered the film, but Minghella ultimately ran with it.View Full PostVanity Fair reports that Leonardo DiCaprio rejected the role—right before catapulting to superstar status with the release of Titanic.View Full Post”Matt is able to deal with his public very gracefully, which was difficult when we were shooting because there were thousands of screaming tourists who became our audience,” Cate Blanchett told Entertainment Weekly in 1999.View Full PostThough his character is killed partway through the film, Law’s stunning good looks and great performance got the majority of the buzz for Mr.
