Jamie Bell And Margaret Qualley Are Going To Swing Time Into A Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers Biopic
You say either and I sayeither, you sayFred AstaireandGinger Rogers, and Amazon Studios says:Jamie BellandMargaret Qualley.TheRocketmanactor and theOnce Upon a Time in Hollywoodactress have been cast as the iconic dancing duo in a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers biopic, titledFred & Ginger.
Margaret Qualleyis about to dance backwards, and in heels, withJamie BellinFred & Ginger, a new biopic about the cinematic dancing icons Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers from Amazon Studios and Automatik.Fred & Ginger, which will be directed byThe End of the F*cking WorldcreatorJonathan Entwistleand penned byA Private Warwriter Arash Amel, will tell “the untold, real love story between these two legends both on- and off-screen,” according toThe Hollywood Reporter.
Astaire and Rogers are probably the most famous dancing partners in cinema, starring in a total of 10 films together, including classics likeThe Gay Divorcee, Top Hat, Swing Time,andShall We Dance. Not all of those films are all-time greats, nor are the beloved classics imperfect either (each one is basically a rehash ofThe Gay Divorcee’s formula, in which Astaire’s character aggressively pursues Roger’s character, and they clash only to find a kinship through dance) but damn, did Astair and Rogers look good when they danced together. Their dance chemistry made up for some of the lazier formulas of their films, and resulted in iconic sequences like theirroller-skate duet, “Heaven” fromTop Hat, or my favorite of their’s, theSwing Timetap dance.
Bell’s casting here is no surprise, as the former child star got his breakout role as the ballet-dancing working class boy inBilly Elliot, and he’s maintained his dance and singing skills in other projects like the FX seriesFosse/Verdonand films likeRocketman. Qualley, meanwhile, is more untested, though she managed to hold her own against Brad Pitt inOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood(neither singing nor dancing, though). She’ll get arguably the harder job as Ginger Rogers, having to dance play an icon and dancebackwards and in heels, as the star was famously described as having to do as Astaire’s screen and dance partner.
Fred Berger and Brian Kavanaugh-Jones will produceFred & Gingerfor Automatik, along with Bell, Qualley, and Amel. Max Minghella will executive produce under his and Bell’s Blank Tape banner. Gemma Levinson will be overseeing for Automatik.
