Once
Paul Mescal was locked for the project, Scott and Paramount Pictures President & CEO Brian Robbins and Co-Presidents Daria Cercek and Michael Ireland pushed hard for a star for the other major role in the film and took a shot with
Denzel Washington, the two-time Oscar winner. When the offer was first presented there it was unknown whether he would actually do it; Washington is known for his great taste in projects and doesn't sign up for just anything. But after having previously worked with
Ridley Scott on
American Gangster (2007) and reading the script, sources close to the project said he was excited about the bad-ass role Scott had conceived with him in mind. A meeting with Scott soon followed, and after the director gave his pitch, Washington was all but on board.
