Richard E Grant: "Casting is a very easy thing for others to take credit for"

Amid the A-list glitz of this weekend’s Oscars, casting directors will step from the shadows into the spotlight as the Academy Awards’ inaugural casting prize is presented. These quietly pivotal yet hitherto almost invisible figures are experts in spotting and allocating talent, and navigating actors’ and directors’ sometimes challenging temperaments.

Richard E Grant has long championed the profession, which his daughter, Olivia, moved into. He says they are usually on board very early in the development process and use their script analysis skills and relationships with actors and agents to attach talent to get the project financed; they often work for years for minimal fees to help get projects off the ground.

Kelly Valentine Hendry stresses the breadth of what casting directors do: "It’s unbelievable how much information we hold about actors. We have our ears to the ground. We know about bad behaviour.

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