In my opinion, many of the best Ridley Scott movies are his historical biopics, such as 2007’s Black Hawk Down or American Gangster. That is only one reason why I have been anticipating House of Gucci - based on the book by Sara Gay Forden about Patrizia Reggiani (Lady Gaga) and her conspiratorial crusade to take control of the fashion dynasty from her ex-husband, Maurizio Gucci (Adam Driver).
The other main reason why this is one of my most anticipated 2021 movies is the Oscar darlings in the House of Gucci cast (also including Jared Leto), whose greatest accomplishments in the acting world and beyond we will summarize for you below.
Lady Gaga (Patrizia Reggiani)
Playing Patrizia “The Black Widow” Reggiani - whose marriage into the Gucci family would end in blood - in House of Gucci is Lady Gaga, whose talents outside of singing would be revealed only a matter of time after the extremely theatrical pop star broke into the mainstream in the late 2000s.
After making her feature-film debut in in Robert Rodriguez’s Machete Kills in 2013, the actress (born Stefani Germanotta) reunited with the filmmaker for a small role in 2014’s Sin City: A Dame to Kill For and played herself in Muppets Most Wanted the same year. In 2016, her performance as the vampiric Countess on American Horror Story: Hotel earned her a Golden Globe and, in 2019, she received two Academy Award nominations for A Star is Born, and won for co-writing “Shallow.”
Adam Driver (Maurizio Gucci)
After The Last Duel, House of Gucci is Ridley Scott’s second fact-based film released in 2021 to star Adam Driver, who plays Maurizio Gucci - who was killed in 1995 by a hitman hired by his ex-wife, Patrizia Reggiani.
The former Marine and former Girls cast member has worked with many other great filmmakers including Steven Spielberg (Lincoln), Joel and Ethan Coen (Inside Llewyn Davis), and Martin Scorsese (Silence), to name a few. Driver has been nominated for acting Oscars twice (first in 2019 for BlacKkKlansman, and then for Netflix’s Marriage Story the following year), but he is most famous, of course, for playing Kylo Ren in the Star Wars movies.
Jared Leto (Paolo Gucci)
Also known for making chart-topping hits with his band, 30 Seconds to Mars, and starring in a few blockbusters (notably Suicide Squad as The Joker and the upcoming Morbius in the title role) is Jared Leto, who looks completely unrecognizable as Maurizio Gucci’s cousin, Paolo, in House of Gucci.
The actor (who has actually done a few Gucci ads) experienced his first breakthrough on the coming-of-age dramedy, My So-Called Life, years before scoring small but memorable parts in movies like Fight Club or American Psycho, leading to roles in surreal favorites like Requiem for a Dream or Mr. Nobody. Arguably, Leto’s best work might be his other stunning supporting performances in Blade Runner 2049 in 2017, and 2013’s Dallas Buyers Club, for which he earned his Academy Award.
Jeremy Irons (Rodolfo Gucci)
Also known for starring in DC movies (as Alfred Pennyworth to Ben Affleck’s Batman) and even DC TV shows (Adrian Veidt in HBO’s Watchmen cast) is fellow Oscar-winner (for Reversal of Fortune) Jeremy Irons, who plays Maurizio’s father, Rodolfo Gucci.
Arguably, his best work is when he is playing a villain, such as Scar in Disney’s original animated The Lion King in 1994, or as Hans Gruber’s brother, Simon, in Die Hard with a Vengeance the following year. Next on Irons’ agenda is a horror movie called Cello, and another biopic called Frankel about Sir Henry Cecil and his titular horse.
Al Pacino (Aldo Gucci)
Only known for one comic book movie (Dick Tracy), and a favorite at the Oscars despite only one win (for 1992’s Scent of a Woman) is Al Pacino - whose House of Gucci role, Aldo Gucci, was the eldest son of the company’s founder, Guccio Gucci, and its chairman from 1953 to 1986.
In addition to starring in other films about infamous family dynasties (The Godfather movies) and historical biopics (Martin Scorsese’s Netflix original The Irishman, most recently), the living legend’s filmography is chock full of iconic crime thrillers (such as Michael Mann’s heist classic Heat) and even a few comedies (such as Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood). Pacino will next be seen in another crime drama called Sniff, and is starring in Michael Radford’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s King Lear as the title character.
Salma Hayek (Giuseppina Auriemma)
Making her comic book movie debut in 2021 with Eternals was Academy Award nominee Salma Hayek, who is actually married to François-Henri Pinault - the son of the founder of Gucci’s parent company (now called Kering) - and plays Patrizia Reggiani’s alleged co-conspirator, Giuseppina Auriemma, in House of Gucci.
Like her co-star, Lady Gaga, the Latinx has also worked with Robert Rodriguez several times (such as in From Dusk Till Dawn) and appeared as herself in Muppets Most Wanted, as well as a few biopics (like Frida, for which she earned her Oscar nod), crime thrillers (such as Oliver Stone’s Savages), and comedies (including the animated Sausage Party in 2016). Also in 2021, she reprised her role as Sonia Kincaid in Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, and starred opposite Owen Wilson in the the Amazon Original sci-fi movie Bliss.
Jack Huston (Domenico De Sole)
Before playing former Gucci America president and current Tom Ford International chairman, Domenico De Sole, in House of Gucci, Jack Huston had already starred in a few dramatizations of infamous historical tragedies.
He played Gerard Malanga (an associate of Andy Warhol) in 2005’s Factory Girl, author Jack Kerouac in 2013’s Kill Your Darlings, and starred as Robert Kennedy (around the time of his assassination) in The Irishman. The former Boardwalk Empire cast member also appeared in American Hustle, played the title hero of the 2016 Ben-Hur remake, and is working on a crime thriller with Robert De Niro called Wash Me in the River.
Camille Cottin (Paola Franchi)
Former Italian model Paola Franchi - who was dating Maurizio Gucci at the time of his assassination - is played in House of Gucci by Camille Cottin. The French actress and comedian made her English-language debut in 2018 with another historical film called Allied, also starring Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard, and would later star opposite Matt Damon in Stillwater in 2021. She is currently filming a biopic about “Iron Lady of Israel” Golda Meir with Helen Mirren.
Reeve Carney (Tom Ford)
Playing fashion mogul turned award-winning filmmaker Tom Ford in House of Gucci, we have Reeve Carney, who made his debut on the sitcom Dave's World in 1994, years before appearing in films like The Tempest from director Julie Taymor, whom he also worked with on Broadway's Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark in the title role.
After playing Dorian Gray on Showtime's Penny Dreadful, Carney played Riff Raff in Fox's remake, The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again in 2016 and acted alongside Zoë Kravitz in Gemini the following year. Next, he will star in the biopic Everybody Here Wants You as late musician Jeff Buckley - a role the Grammy-winning musician and former lead singer of the band Carney is an ideal choice for.
Clearly it would take acting royalty to portray a group of people considered royalty in the fashion industry and it looks like that is exactly what we are in for with the cast of House of Gucci, which hits theaters Wednesday, November 24, 2021.
