Brad Pitt shoots a scene for his latest film ‘Babylon’ on the beach in San Pedro, California. Pitt was seen holding an umbrella for shade, sipping an ice coffee and chatting with crew as he prepared to film a scene in which he plays an actor. I assume that won’t be a stretch for him.
Written by Damien Chazelle and set in the late 1920s during the movie industry’s transition from silent films to talkies, Babylon explores the rise and fall of multiple characters and has been described as “The Great Gatsby on steroids.”
Margot Robbie, Tobey Maguire, Olivia Wilde, Spike Jonze, Phoebe Tonkin, Chloe Fineman, Max Minghella, Lukas Haas, Flea, Rory Scovel, Samara Weaving, Eric Roberts, P.J. Byrne, Jovan Adepo, Li Jun Li and Katherine Waterston and even Brad Pitt’s good friend and Red Hot Chilipeppers bassist, Flea have all signed up for the period Hollywood film set to release in 2022.
Many silent movie stars had their careers die when talking movies overtook the industry. While there is a myth that many macho actors like John Gilbert, lost their following overnight when the world heard them and discovered they had squeaky voices, the truth is that audio brought a realism to film that the silent films (with the sped up, jerky movements that seem comical today) just didn’t have. More acting depth was possible and stories were told in a new way, with less physical action. You no longer needed to tell a story through movement alone, requiring different types of talent. “Talkie” stars took off and the fresh breed of glamourous faces just pushed the older silent stars into the background.