Oh baby, baby — Britney Spears very nearly snagged the lead role in “The Notebook.”
Casting director Matthew Barry told The Post that the 2002 nationwide seek for the a part of Allie — through which he saw actresses corresponding to Jessica Biel, Claire Danes and Scarlett Johannson — ultimately got here all the way down to Rachel McAdams and Spears.
“It was tough because we did narrow it all the way down to Rachel and Britney,” Barry said of the trouble to search out the right leading lady for the 2004 romance movie based on Nicholas Sparks’ popular novel.
And star Ryan Gosling was impressed with Spears, Barry said: “I feel Ryan would’ve preferred either of them.”
The casting director added, “the studio, for obvious reasons, would’ve liked Britney. But additionally they agreed and trusted [director] Nick [Cassavetes] with Rachel. That’s something that doesn’t occur anymore. A $29 million movie with two unknowns? No.”
For fans, Spears’ audition tape has develop into a holy grail of Hollywood.
But now they will witness a chunk of the performance she may need given.
The day before the publication of the “…Baby One More Time” singer’s latest memoir, “The Woman In Me,” through which she discusses her “Notebook” experience, Barry decided to release the coveted video — and it has spread online.
“It was time,” he said. “Taking nothing away from Rachel and her performance, Britney held her own, and it was time for her fans and everybody else to see what all of the fuss was about.”
In prep for her screen test, the then 21-year-old pop star worked with Barry and his partner Nancy for 2 days on scenes and “entering into the spirit of Allie” before reading with Ryan Gosling, then 22, who played Noah off-camera.
The young pair already knew one another from their early days on “The Mickey Mouse Club,” but they were all business while the tryout was occurring.
“When Britney got here in, it wasn’t all hunky dory implausible memories [for them],” Barry said. “It was very skilled.”
He added, “Ryan was very conscious of that, and he wanted Britney to have her time with Nick to speak concerning the role, talk concerning the character. After which when that was throughout, it was reunion time.”
Within the rawly emotional clip, Spears performs Allie’s monologue that begins, “I’m not stayin’” and results in the actress breaking down in tears when she says, “I prayed so that you can die within the war.”
Spears wowed them. But ultimately “it was just Rachel’s role,” Barry said.
Spears writes in “The Woman in Me” that she has no regrets about losing the gig.
“Though it could have been fun to reconnect with Ryan Gosling after our time on ‘The Mickey Mouse Club,’ I’m glad I didn’t do it,” she said.
Nevertheless, 21 years after her impressive audition, Barry believes Spears, now 41, still has got what it takes to be an actress.
“We’re all watching her with these self-made videos [on Instagram] and going ‘she’s dying to perform’,” he said.
“Go train, since you’re really f–king good, and this video proves it.”
Oh baby, baby — Britney Spears very nearly snagged the lead role in “The Notebook.”
Casting director Matthew Barry told The Post that the 2002 nationwide seek for the a part of Allie — through which he saw actresses corresponding to Jessica Biel, Claire Danes and Scarlett Johannson — ultimately got here all the way down to Rachel McAdams and Spears.
“It was tough because we did narrow it all the way down to Rachel and Britney,” Barry said of the trouble to search out the right leading lady for the 2004 romance movie based on Nicholas Sparks’ popular novel.
And star Ryan Gosling was impressed with Spears, Barry said: “I feel Ryan would’ve preferred either of them.”
The casting director added, “the studio, for obvious reasons, would’ve liked Britney. But additionally they agreed and trusted [director] Nick [Cassavetes] with Rachel. That’s something that doesn’t occur anymore. A $29 million movie with two unknowns? No.”
For fans, Spears’ audition tape has develop into a holy grail of Hollywood.
But now they will witness a chunk of the performance she may need given.
The day before the publication of the “…Baby One More Time” singer’s latest memoir, “The Woman In Me,” through which she discusses her “Notebook” experience, Barry decided to release the coveted video — and it has spread online.
“It was time,” he said. “Taking nothing away from Rachel and her performance, Britney held her own, and it was time for her fans and everybody else to see what all of the fuss was about.”
In prep for her screen test, the then 21-year-old pop star worked with Barry and his partner Nancy for 2 days on scenes and “entering into the spirit of Allie” before reading with Ryan Gosling, then 22, who played Noah off-camera.
The young pair already knew one another from their early days on “The Mickey Mouse Club,” but they were all business while the tryout was occurring.
“When Britney got here in, it wasn’t all hunky dory implausible memories [for them],” Barry said. “It was very skilled.”
He added, “Ryan was very conscious of that, and he wanted Britney to have her time with Nick to speak concerning the role, talk concerning the character. After which when that was throughout, it was reunion time.”
Within the rawly emotional clip, Spears performs Allie’s monologue that begins, “I’m not stayin’” and results in the actress breaking down in tears when she says, “I prayed so that you can die within the war.”
Spears wowed them. But ultimately “it was just Rachel’s role,” Barry said.
Spears writes in “The Woman in Me” that she has no regrets about losing the gig.
“Though it could have been fun to reconnect with Ryan Gosling after our time on ‘The Mickey Mouse Club,’ I’m glad I didn’t do it,” she said.
Nevertheless, 21 years after her impressive audition, Barry believes Spears, now 41, still has got what it takes to be an actress.
“We’re all watching her with these self-made videos [on Instagram] and going ‘she’s dying to perform’,” he said.
“Go train, since you’re really f–king good, and this video proves it.”
