How Fly Me to the Moon Writer Rose Gilroy Won Over Scarlett Johansson

It’s straightforward to imagine {that a} screenwriter with the final identify Gilroy had a simple foray into present enterprise, however that was something however the case for Fly Me to the Moon’s Rose Gilroy. 

Because the daughter of Dan Gilroy and Rene Russo, in addition to niece to Tony and John Gilroy, Rose tried to steer away from the household enterprise by making an attempt her hand at pre-med and pre-law trajectories throughout faculty, however neither possibility ended up being within the playing cards for her. Upon graduating Colgate College in 2016, she then modeled for a stretch, however it quickly grew to become obvious that writing was in her DNA as nicely. In any case, she’s additionally the granddaughter of the late Frank D. Gilroy, who received a Pulitzer and a Tony for his 1965 play, The Topic Was Roses.

So she began writing scripts, together with a psychological thriller referred to as The Pack, which is at the moment in growth and has Alexander Skarsgård hooked up as director and star. (It’s unclear if Florence Pugh stays concerned.) This pattern, in addition to a sci-fi script, finally opened the door to a gathering with Scarlett Johansson’s manufacturing firm, These Photos, which is led by the actor and her producing companions, Keenan Flynn and Jonathan Lia. That’s after they pitched Gilroy on the overall thought for Fly Me to the Moon, then generally known as Challenge Artemis, which revolved round a plot to televise manufactured footage of the 1969 Moon touchdown with the actual audio from the precise Apollo 11 mission.

Gilroy was instantly taken by the NASA-set comedy/drama, however regardless of her curiosity and persistence, her lack {of professional} work and no WGA membership grew to become obstacles. So, as a last-ditch effort, she took the initiative and wager on herself.

“In the end, I used to be actually inexperienced and never within the guild, so [These Pictures] had been like, ‘We like your stuff, however that is such of venture,’” Gilroy tells The Hollywood Reporter. “So I wrote the primary 15 pages on spec with their pitch, and I received the job that means. We then spent years growing it internally simply with Scarlett’s firm earlier than she even took it out.”

The undertaking was initially meant to be a producorial effort for Johansson, not a starring car, however she was so impressed by Gilroy’s drafts and be aware implementation that she couldn’t go up the possibility to play Kelly Jones, who’s finest summed up as Mad Males‘s Don Draper combined with Higher Name Saul‘s Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler. Evidently, Gilroy was elated when the Misplaced in Translation star doubled down in response to her work.

“It was past my wildest goals. I used to be completely shocked and in awe. The concept Scarlett can be delivering strains from one thing I wrote — I’m nonetheless pinching myself,” Gilroy says. “I’m satisfied it is a actually elaborate prank on me, so it was loopy.”

The movie then grew to become a reunion between Johansson and longtime good friend/collaborator, Chris Evans, however the revolving door of Hollywood had its means, leading to Channing Tatum becoming a member of because the male lead, NASA director Cole Davis. Greg Berlanti additionally changed Jason Bateman within the director’s chair, and now, in the end, the end result is a well-received romcom drama with the escapades of Ocean’s Eleven and Catch Me If You Can. And, at a time when our present-day actual world is brimming with conspiracies and cynicism, Gilroy is proud to be part of a patriotic movie that celebrates one among America’s biggest accomplishments. 

That mentioned, for a movie that pokes enjoyable on the Moon touchdown conspiracy, there, in fact, needed to be references to filmmaker Stanley Kubrick, whom conspiracy theorists nonetheless credit score with staging the Moon touchdown. So the movie encompasses a couple strains in reference to The Shining filmmaker, however Gilroy is now revealing that there have been early drafts of the script the place Jim Rash’s fictional director character was initially Kubrick himself.

“There was an early draft the place Stanley Kubrick was in it, however it was form of kooky and didn’t really feel proper,” Gilroy shares.

Beneath, throughout a latest dialog with THR, Gilroy additionally discusses the trustworthy suggestions that her household and buddies supplied her throughout writing, earlier than explaining the origin story of Fly Me to the Moon’s feline scene-stealer, Mischief. 

So I’d wish to get the Rose Gilroy story first. Did you resist the household enterprise for a time frame, or did it all the time really feel like a foregone conclusion? 

I resisted the household enterprise for a extremely very long time, and I took a historically educational path. I went to a small liberal arts faculty, pre-med, and I legitimately wasn’t good sufficient. I attempted so onerous in all of the lessons and I simply couldn’t get by means of them. I might work more durable than everybody else and nonetheless get a C. So then I used to be pre-law, unofficially, and learning for the LSAT, and all the things simply obtained derailed once I graduated. So I actually simply began writing out of futility. I didn’t know what else to do, and it was the very first thing that folks mentioned I used to be good at. 

I also needs to say that I labored as a analysis assistant for all 4 years of school, and I might not be the place I’m in the present day had I not carried out that. A lot of my inspiration and writing course of comes from analysis and simply with the ability to dig deep on a subject or a selected world. Within the case of Fly Me to the Moon, it was NASA within the Sixties and the Apollo period. So [college] ended up being good for one thing else, and that’s the lengthy and the wanting it.

Most Hollywood backstories have a good quantity of overlap, and whereas I don’t imply to place you on the spot, you’re one of many few fashions turned produced screenwriters. Jessica Bendinger, who wrote Convey It On, and Sofia Coppolla are the one different examples I may discover on the studio stage. Are you conscious of how distinctive this path is? 

I by no means considered it that means. I actually didn’t. I did mannequin for a quick time, and I cherished the those who I met and the buddies that I made. So I’ve nothing towards the trade, however I used to be simply actually misplaced throughout that point. It may be onerous; it’s brief cash. So I’m grateful that I discovered this and am capable of have one thing else. All my buddies would get promotions, and I might work a pair occasions a month on some editorial shoot, so I used to be grateful to transition out of it. However I by no means considered it as distinctive. I don’t know why. 

In 2018 or 2019, you began with shorts and a few TV, after which, in 2021, Scarlett Johansson’s firm, These Photos, generated the concept for this movie and developed the story. How did the writing project finally find yourself in your fingers? 

This was the primary paid job I ever had. I used to be not within the guild [WGA] once I obtained this job, however I’d been writing for three-and-a-half years. I wrote The Pack earlier than this, which continues to be with Alexander Skarsgård [as director-star]. So I had samples that had been going round and gaining traction, and Scarlett and her two producers who run her firm — Keenan Flynn, who additionally got here up with the story, and Jonathan Lia — had been taking basic conferences with writers in L.A. They’d learn this kooky sci-fi script that I wrote and The Pack, and so they had been keen to satisfy with me. In order that they pitched me [writer] Invoice Kirstein and Keenan Flynn’s unique concept that that they had provide you with collectively. They’d a tough pitch for it, and I used to be like, “That’s so cool.” Nobody had ever pitched me something for area and NASA, and I used to be so honored that they might even consider me for it. 

So I began harassing them for the job. (Laughs.) However, finally, I used to be actually inexperienced and never within the guild, in order that they had been like, “We like your stuff, however that is such of venture.” So I wrote the primary 15 pages on spec with their pitch, and I received the job that means. We then spent years growing it internally simply with Scarlett’s firm earlier than she even took it out. So I obtained so fortunate to get to work together with her and develop it together with her, and just like the moon touchdown itself, this script was developed within the spirit of collaboration. In order that’s the way it occurred.

You’ve folks in your inside circle who can ship a line for you out loud. They’ll additionally supply notes on a draft. Did you make these requests all through the writing course of?

After all, I obtained notes — not simply from my household, however from everybody. And, rising up in my household, I knew from my dad [Dan Gilroy] that this isn’t a glamorous job. It’s hours in entrance of a pc display, alone, and writing is rewriting. So I took notes from everybody. You must get as many notes as you may. Additionally, the best factor that my dad and mom and different folks gave me was not BS-ing me. They only gave me the onerous reality: “This isn’t good,” or, “This wants work.” In order that’s the way you get higher. That’s the one means you will get higher, other than studying different scripts on-line. So I positively obtained notes from folks.

There was a time when Scarlett was solely going to supply the undertaking. So, what had been the circumstances during which you heard that she not solely cherished your script, but in addition wished to play Kelly as a substitute of simply producing? 

Properly, it was past my wildest goals. I used to be completely shocked and in awe. The concept Scarlett can be delivering strains from one thing I wrote — I’m nonetheless pinching myself. I’m satisfied it is a actually elaborate prank on me, so it was loopy. However I’ll say to her and Keenan’s credit score, I handed in a draft and so they gave me numerous notes. There have been numerous notes after I handed in that first draft. After which, from there, I took these notes and I labored actually onerous to place them in. I then despatched the script again, after which it was like, “Hey, that is feeling good.” So there have been extra notes from there, however she added a lot to this character. Scarlett exists on each web page of the script. So I used to be simply blown away to get to work together with her in that capability, and the truth that she was going to play Kelly simply blew my thoughts.

The comps for Kelly, a minimum of to me, are Don Draper meets Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGil and Kim Wexler. (Kelly — like Kim on Higher Name Saul — pulls off a grift utilizing a pretend pregnant stomach.) Did you break her down that particularly? 

Completely. Don Draper was completely part of the dialog. Leo’s [DiCaprio] character in Catch Me If You Can was one other character within the dialog. So Don Draper was completely an inspiration, and that scene of Kelly with the stomach was really within the first 15 pages that I wrote on spec to win the job. So Don Draper and the concept of reality and lies completely impressed by that.

There was a time when conspiracy theories had been principally loved as leisure. However that’s now not the case as there’s a brand new one each 5 minutes, and so they’re something however enjoyable now. So I used to be fairly relieved at the way you cleverly handled one of many oldest conspiracies involving the Moon touchdown. Did you’ve numerous apprehension about stroll that tightrope, particularly with NASA’s involvement hanging within the stability? 

I took an interest on this undertaking initially as a result of I’ve an enormous admiration and curiosity in NASA and the Apollo period and what they did and the importance of it. The human accomplishment of getting ourselves off this planet and onto one other world actually meant one thing to me. So I used to be by no means frightened in regards to the conspiracy factor as a result of my intention on each web page was to attempt to honor and have a good time what NASA did on that day. You possibly can nonetheless have enjoyable with issues, although. You possibly can name issues out and have some enjoyable, and nonetheless make a movie that’s finally about the truth that the reality issues. I really was not conscious of how huge and far-reaching the conspiracy is, as a result of, once I have a look at all the things on-line, it’s so clear to me that it did occur. So it was all the time my intention, and the intention of everybody round me, to have a good time the Moon touchdown, and the conspiracy was by no means actually within the forefront of my thoughts.

As soon as all of the analysis and NASA supplies got here your means relating to Apollo 11, did the Moon touchdown conspiracy really feel much more preposterous? 

Completely, simply as numerous conspiracies do. There was simply by no means a doubt in my thoughts. Plenty of occasions, if you ask someone why they don’t suppose that we went, they’ll say, “Properly, we by no means went again.” We really went again six occasions, and it will’ve been seven had the EECOM system on Apollo 13 not failed. So all of it performs into the a part of the film that folks solely actually cared about this as a result of it was a race with the Russians, and if there’s no funding and cash, then the general public doesn’t find out about it. So we addressed it in an fascinating, roundabout means that additionally honors what occurred, and it was such a cool factor that America did. So this movie feels patriotic to me. It celebrates what we did.

For those who needed to, do you suppose you would make a robust case to a denier now? 

Yeah, there are some issues which are price correcting, and if I used to be requested about it or spoken to about it, I’d attempt my finest to once more do what this film does and have a good time what NASA did. I’m so honored to be in a rustic that’s a part of that accomplishment, and it’s a bummer when folks attempt in any option to diminish that. I’d additionally say, “Go see the film,” as a result of it’s okay to have enjoyable with it and never take it too severely.

You knew sooner or later you’d need to reference Stanley Kubrick, who’s credited with directing the conspiracy theorists’ model of the Moon touchdown in a Hollywood basement. So what number of permutations had been there so far as Kubrick references? 

There was an early draft the place Stanley Kubrick was in it, however it was form of kooky and didn’t really feel proper. After all, folks straightened it out, however there was all the time an concept that there was going to be some line or some form of a reference.

So Jim Rash’s pissed off filmmaker character seemingly advanced out of Stanley Kubrick?

Yeah, however I used to be speaking years and years again. And thank God it did [evolve], as a result of, oh my gosh, Jim Rash simply blew my thoughts. And to not throw myself below the bus, however a lot of his character was nice improv. These strains simply got here out of the deepest a part of him, and I used to be so grateful to work with him on this.

Fly Me to the Moon was as soon as generally known as Challenge Artemis. Did you champion one title particularly? 

I like the title we went with. It’s romantic and delightful and optimistic, and it actually hits each quadrant for me. What they landed with simply feels proper, prefer it was all the time purported to be that.

My colleague wrote a chunk on the latest rise of cats on display, and now your film is one other instance of this phenomenon. While you had been writing the feline character of Mischief, did you’ve any sense {that a} cat wave was coming by the use of The Marvels, A Quiet Place: Day One, Argylle and Ripley?

(Laughs.) No, in no way. I’m so completely satisfied that it’s within the zeitgeist. Out of the spirit of collaboration, the tip of the film initially had a It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World-kind comedy sequence taking place. And Keenan, in one among his notes, was like, “That is cool, however what if there was one thing shifting, like … a cat?” I then spit out my espresso studying that be aware; it was so humorous. My grandma, who has since handed, had a black cat named Mischief, and he was all the time unplugging the TV and messing up your stuff. I then thought in regards to the superstition of all of it, so we threaded it throughout, and I’m so excited to be a part of this cat wave. There’s no higher wave to be on.

Fly Me to the Moon is partially about faking it until you make it. The characters had been doing that, as was NASA to some extent. Have you ever additionally acknowledged by now that most individuals are making it up as they go alongside? 

Yeah, positively. I’m completely making it up as we go alongside. However Kelly is such a survivor, so it’s important to be. You additionally need to bend in the direction of folks, and typically, you want slightly little bit of each. Kelly has some superb factors, and Cole has some superb factors, however they need to bend in the direction of one another. In order that’s true in actual life in numerous methods.

As you talked about earlier, The Pack continues to be making its means by means of growth?  

Yeah, it completely is. Strike timing threw all the things slightly down, however I’m so excited. Alex [Skarsgård] goes to do an unbelievable job with it, and I’ve utter religion in him. So I’m very excited for that one as nicely.

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Fly Me to the Moon opens in theaters on July 12.