Babylon's Margot Robbie Initially Doubted The Script's Wild Hollywood Debauchery Would Make It To Screen
The upcoming Damien Chazelle film "Babylon" has drawn up its fair amount of intrigue, especially in the teaser trailer that dropped in September. There's an enviable cast with talents like Brad Pitt ("Ad Astra"), Margot Robbie ("Suicide Squad"), Diego Calva ("Narcos: Mexico"), and Tobey Maguire ("Spider-Man"). Audiences also can't ignore the fact that there's a literal elephant in the room (as well as an alligator) and that Nellie (Robbie) volunteers to fight a snake, to which Pitt's character says, "F*** yeah!"
The best part of the teaser is that it doesn't give too much away: Viewers know Nellie has a dream but gets into some trouble, and predictably, hotshot Jack Conrad (Pitt) seemingly has it made but doesn't. There's so much excitement that goes on with the heavy partying, fun outfits, and well, drug use. But the hijinks the characters get into was actually something Robbie was a little worried about.
Margot Robbie didn't think certain scenes of Babylon would be allowed
In an interview with Variety, Carey Mulligan talked with Margot Robbie about the latter's upcoming film "Babylon," and the first thing Robbie said was that the film "is like 'La Dolce Vita' and '[The] Wolf of Wall Street' had a baby." While "La Dolce Vita" focuses on a journalist on a spiritual journey in Rome, "The Wolf of Wall Street" depicts Jordan Belfort's (Leonardo DiCaprio) plummet from the stock market after his firm is found laced with fraud. Belfort is a hard drug addict and womanizer, making the film crude and raunchy. Robbie was in it, so she knows firsthand.
The teaser for "Babylon" helps audiences understand how Robbie can make the comparison: "La Dolce Vita" represents the romanticization of Nellie's dreams of being in showbiz, while "The Wolf of Wall Street" represents the grittier, promiscuous details surrounding her. Though Robbie loved the script, she didn't think they could pull it off, asking, "Are we allowed to show that? Are we allowed to show that?" She paused more than once after reading a scene, wondering, "Are we going to get away with this?"
With an R rating, they could. According to Robbie, the scene accompanying the elephant is an orgy: "It's pretty much a party-slash-orgy. It kind of turns into an orgy." It's safe to say that seeing "Babylon" shouldn't be a family affair.