Scarlett Johansson and James D’Arcy have been added to the cast of director Sacha Gervasi’s Alfred Hitchcock And The Making Of Psycho. Johansson will play actress Janet Leigh, whose shower scene in the film became one of the most iconic moments of director Alfred Hitchcock’s career. D’Arcy will be playing actor Anthony Perkins, who rocketed to fame for his portrayal of the mild-mannered but murderous Norman Bates.
They will be joining Anthony Hopkins, who has already been signed on the play the Master of Suspense himself, and Helen Mirren, who is set to play Hitch’s wife, and often unsung collaborator, Alma.
Given its grizzly undertones, Psycho was tough sell for even Hitchcock to make to studio Paramount Pictures. they eventually gave in, but kept the director on a short lease with a smaller than normal budget, forcing Hitchcock to use a crew from his television series Alfred Hitchcock Presents in place of a more expensive film crew. The film would go on to become one the director’s biggest and most iconic successes.
McLaughlin’s script, an adaption of the book by Stephen Rebello, actually landed on the Black List a few years back and it’s a great read. Not only does he trace the production of the film from Hitch first pitching it to the studio through to its production, but he intercuts with the story of Ed Gein, the real-life serial killer who inspired Psycho’s Norman Bates. And much like Hitchcock’s appearances in the trailers for his films and on his television series, McLaughlin has Hitchcock frequently break the fourth wall and talk to the audience, commenting on what is going on with his dry, sardonic wit.
With Johansson and D’Arcy’s casting there are only two major roles left to be cast – that of Gein and of Patricia Hitchcock, Hitch and Alma’s daughter.
