HBO’s seven hour miniseries, Criminal Justice, is going through a bit of a casting change today. Originally, James Gandolfini was set for the lead role, that of Jack Stone. He appeared in the pilot but after his tragic death, he was replaced by Robert De Niro. Now, De Niro has dropped out due to scheduling conflicts and John Turturro has stepped in to fill his shoes.
Based on Peter Moffat’s BBC series and co-written by Richard Price (The Wire), Criminal Justice follows Stone, a NYC attorney who “gets in over-his-head when he takes on the case of a Pakistani accused of murdering a girl on the Upper West Side.” Of course, not everything is as it seems and Stone soon finds himself in a world of trouble.
For those who are wondering, HBO will not air the pilot episode with Gandolfini in it. Instead, they’ll restart and shoot from the beginning with Turturro in the lead role, which makes complete sense. No premiere date has been announced just yet, but back when De Niro was cast, production was set to begin in March. Now, with Turturro all ready to go, I imagine that it won’t be too long before cameras start rolling.
Tell us, do you think John Turturro is a suitable replacement for De Niro in Criminal Justice? Sound off below!
