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Scarlett Johansson’s latest filmFly Me to the Moonhas opened with some good response in theaters. The film follows the relationship between a marketing specialist, played by Johansson, and the NASA director in charge of the Apollo 11 mission, played by Channing Tatum. With the talents involved, fans would be surprised to know that neophyte Rose Gilroy was tasked with writing the screenplay.
However, Rose Gilroy is not just any writing newbie. Writing is imbibed in her DNA as she is the daughter of screenwriter Dan Gilroy and granddaughter of playwright Frank D. Gilroy. Her mother is actress Rene Russo. However, the big names associated with her did not make it any easier for her to land her gig with Johansson.
Scarlett Johansson Played A Huge Gamble In Tasking Rose Gilroy to Write ForFly Me To The Moon
Coming from a writing family, Rose Gilroy did not immediately delve into writing screenplays. She tried to go into other careers including modeling, but the writing DNA brought her back to her family profession. She wrote the scripts for the psychological thrillerThe Packand a sci-fi film.The Packis currently in the works, withAlexander Skarsgårddirecting and starring in the film.
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These two scripts also got the attention ofScarlett Johansson‘s production company, These Pictures. Keenan Flynn, a producing partner at the company, had a story titledProject Artemiswhich revolved around televising a fake Moon landing. Gilroy met with Flynn and his co-writer Bill Kirsterin and liked their pitch.
She shared with THR that she was so honored that they would consider her for a script related to NASA and space. However, These Pictures had major challenges in hiring Gilroy for the project. She did not have any experience at that point and she was not a member of the WGA. However, Gilroy agreed to write the first 15 pages on spec and won the job. Gilroy shared withTHR:
No one had ever pitched me anything for space and NASA, and I was so honored that they would even think of me for it. So I started harassing them for the job. But, ultimately, I was really green and not in the guild, so they were like, ‘We like your stuff, but this is such a gamble.’ So I wrote the first 15 pages on spec with their pitch, and I won the job that way.
Johansson initially only had plans to produce the film under her company banner. However, the script impressed her so much that she also took on the lead role of Kelly Jones. Gilroy shared that Johansson and Flynn gave her a lot of notes on her first draft. She shared that she was pinching herself at the fact that Johansson would be delivering lines from something she wrote.
Rose Gilroy Used Don Draper As Inspiration For Scarlett Johansson’s Kelly Jones
Rose Gilroy further opened up about the inspiration behind Scarlett Johansson’s character of a marketing executive Kelly Jones. She shared thatMad Men‘s Don Draper was a major inspiration for the character. She also admitted thatBetter Call Saulcharacters Saul Goodman and Kim Wexler (played byBob Odenkirkand Rhea Seehorn) also served as inspirations.
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Gilroy shared that the scene whereKelly Jones pulls off a griftusing a fake pregnant belly was inspired by Seehorn’s character and was included in her spec script as well. She also namedLeonardo DiCaprio‘s character fromCatch Me If You Canas another inspiration. Gilroy shared:
Don Draper was absolutely a part of the conversation. Leo’s [DiCaprio] character in Catch Me If you’re able to was another character in the conversation. So Don Draper was totally an inspiration, and that scene of Kelly with the belly was actually in the first 15 pages that I wrote on spec to win the job. So Don Draper and the idea of truth and lies totally inspired by that.
When asked if she got any notes from her family, Gilroy shared that she took notes from everyone she could meet. She shared that her parents gave her honest feedback without“BS-ing”her, which helped her to get better.
Fly Me to the Moonis currently running in theaters and is expected to hit AppleTV+ at a later date.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
