Recasting The Romantic Comedy

So this came out recently:

Did I go see it? No, no I did not. For one thing, it looked terrible. Also, Kutcher. Has the world really not gotten tired of seeing him as a leading man? Really?

I did find the casting of Natalie Portman interesting, though. I don't think she's an actress who seems particularly suited to romantic comedies--she never comes across as terribly warm, I find. All the same, I appreciated that someone, somewhere was getting a bit more creative in casting.

And it got me to thinking....

I'd like to consider myself a fan of romantic comedies, but the good ones are few and far between. Too often we see the same faces pop up time and time again in hackneyed stories. It gets boring.

I don't have any story suggestions today, but I have some ideas for shaking things up, casting-wise. Straight off, I want to say that I like all of these actors, and I don't want to doom them to mediocre romantic comedy hell. Let's assume when I say romantic comedy, I'm picturing something high quality like Bridget Jones's Diary, not, well, No Strings Attached. With regard to the women, I'm not interested in them playing the pretty lady in one of those fratty guy comedies that technically have a romantic storyline--let's pretend in this scenario that there are some actually interesting comedic roles available for women. Also, as much as I love them, I realize not all of these actors would or could headline a blockbuster film. I imagine some of them could pull off some lovely, quirky indie comedies though.

Without further ado...

Kate Winslet: Kate is well known as one of the best actresses of her generation, and she's no stranger to the awards circuit. I think she's great, yet I rarely see her movies because they just look so depressing. I'd like that to change. She did do a romantic comedy once, The Holiday, and I realize that did not turn out so well. (I haven't seen it, so I'm just relying on word of mouth here.) All the same, I think that she would shine with the right script.

Pair her with: Pretty much any cute British contemporary of hers would do the trick, I imagine. And Leo, of course, if we think he can do comedy (I think the jury's out on that).

Matt Smith: Matt is huge in the UK, being the star of Doctor Who, but isn't terribly well known on this side of the pond, except among geeks and Anglophiles. Lucky for me, I'm both. Doctor Who has proved that Matt has quite a range, and being adorable is certainly in his wheelhouse. I'd love to see him be more romantic than he is usually given the opportunity to be as the Doctor.

Pair him with: You know, I could actually see him with Kate Winslet. She could be all surprised by her love for a younger man and whatnot.

Miranda Hart: Let's continue with the Brits for a minute, shall we? Miranda is the star of her own eponymous sitcom in the UK. I've seen the first series, which I found a bit uneven, but Miranda herself is undeniably wonderful. I realize that there is often an aspirational element to romantic comedies, but it would be nice to see a totally weird and relatable Everywoman like Miranda in them, too. Her persona (on the show, at least) is somewhat like 30 Rock's Liz Lemon, if Liz Lemon were 6'1 and had less professional success. That seems movie-ready, right?

Pair her with: Tricky, actually. Someone tall & wacky in his own right. Chris O'Dowd? Stephen Merchant?

Maulik Pancholy: Maulik is probably best known for his supporting roles on 30 Rock and Weeds. He's been in movies as well, but I've never seen him as the lead. Well, I think that could change. Look at him with those flowers. Certainly he could play the sensitive, romantic type--and we already know he can do funny.

Pair him with: Lizzy Caplan has enough hipster edginess to balance with Maulik's boyishness. I can see them in a sweet indie flick.

Winona Ryder: Winona's had a long career, and she's currently enjoying some buzz following her role in Black Swan. I thought she was great in it and, like many women around my age, I suspect, I've missed seeing her in movies. She's actually in a romantic comedy right now, but I think we can all agree that playing a thankless lady role in a Vince Vaughn movie is not what I had in mind when I started this entry. I think Winona would make quite the sympathetic romcom heroine and could handle a role with some depth. For instance, what would Reality Bites's Laney be doing now?

Pair her with: Oh, you know I have to say Ethan Hawke. Or what about Paul Rudd? Just throwing that out there. Nothing wrong with a little more Paul Rudd in our lives.

Colin Hanks: Let's just get this out of the way--Colin's father Tom has made a ton of successful films, including one of the most surprisingly enduring romantic comedies of the last fifteen years, You've Got Mail. But Colin deserves a place on this list in his own right. His work in recent years (The Good Guys, Mad Men) has shown that he's versatile. It would be fun to see him take on a leading film role now that he's established himself as an actor (I enjoyed Orange County well enough at the time, and that certainly had a romantic element, but I'm sure he could do more now). If he brings a little of his father's magic to a romantic role, so much the better.

Pair him with: For whatever reason, Felicia Day popped to mind. I think they would be pretty dang adorable together.

Gabourey Sidibe: I never saw Precious, but I think a lot of people fell in love with Gabourey when she made the press rounds during awards season last year. She just came off as so bubbly and endearing that it was hard not to. While her hosting of Saturday Night Live was underwhelming, I have trouble believing that she wouldn't be able to bring some of her own natural sparkle to the screen in a romantic comedy.

Pair her with: Okay, this is super geeky, but I kind of remembered Gabourey having a celebrity crush on someone. Did a little Googling, turns out I was thinking of Justin Timberlake. So how cute would it be if she were in a movie with him? Super cute, I think.

Jesse Tyler Ferguson: Jesse's career has really taken off in the last couple of years with the success of Modern Family. He's adept at playing a funny good guy, and I can't imagine that he wouldn't do it just as well on the big screen. In real life, Jesse is gay, and while I'm sure he could romance the ladies convincingly, he also seems like the perfect choice for a romantic comedy about a gay couple. There have not been so many, obviously, but hopefully that is something that will be changing in the coming years, and there's no reason that the change can't start with a super awesome flick starring Jesse.

Pair him with: Zachary Quinto. What? They seem to be friends and they look super cute together in pictures. Works for me.

Well, that seems like a good start. Hoping that someone else shares my love for these actors, as I'm going to be disappointed if we can't get at least one of them in a romcom soon.