The Dropout star feared show would be cancelled when Kate McKinnon left
The SNL star was the first choice to play Elizabeth Holmes.
The Dropout star Naveen Andrews has revealed he had doubts the show would get made after original star Kate McKinnon abruptly pulled out before filming could begin.
The drama series is based on the true story of Elizabeth Holmes and her health company Theranos, which falsely claimed to have invented revolutionary new blood testing technology.
Amanda Seyfried portrays the disgraced CEO, who was convicted on fraud charges at the start of the year, but the role was initially bagged by SNL and Ghostbusters star McKinnon.
When asked if her departure from The Dropout made him uncertain about the future of the series, Andrews told RadioTimes.com: "God, yes."
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He continued: "I mean, this is almost going back two years now when I was first attached to it and Kate was going to do it. But then we heard, ‘No, she's not going to do it’ and in this business that means ‘it may not happen’.
"I think just after Mank came out, the film that Amanda [Seyfried] did with Gary Oldman, she stepped in. So you know, [these] things happen."
Mank can certainly be considered a career-changing gig for Seyfried as it secured the Mamma Mia! star her first ever Academy Award nomination in the category of Best Supporting Actress.
Speaking to RadioTimes.com and other press, The Dropout showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether reiterated that McKinnon's exit was down to availability issues created by the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We were actually going to start shooting with Kate McKinnon in March 2020, so that didn't happen. And then it was like, two more years [passed] and she just, you know, it was like scheduling," she explained.
Meriwether added that bringing in Seyfried didn't change the tone of the project, as comedian McKinnon had always intended this to be a more dramatic role.
"Kate had really wanted it to be serious, so it was never a satirical piece," she revealed. "And then Amanda just stepped in and I think has this amazing ability to acknowledge absurdity, but keep the emotional stakes of the scene."
Andrews co-stars in The Dropout as Sunny Balwani, business partner and secret lover to Holmes, while the cast also includes Stephen Fry (It's A Sin), Dylan Minnette (Scream) and Alan Ruck (Succession).
The Dropout premieres on Disney Plus on Thursday 3rd March 2022. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
