Jesse Eisenberg: Aaron Sorkin assumed Jesse Eisenberg would return for the "Social Network" follow-up. He was wrong.
Eisenberg played Mark Zuckerberg in the 2010 film. He will not reprise the role in "The Social Reckoning."
Jeremy Strong plays the Facebook founder instead.
Sorkin discussed the casting in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
He said he was only a few pages from finishing the script when he saw Eisenberg at a party.
He told the actor a draft was coming in a couple of weeks. Eisenberg smiled and nodded, according to Sorkin.
Sorkin then sent him the script. He said it never crossed his mind that Eisenberg would pass.
Eisenberg did pass. Sorkin did not give up right away.
The director said he wrote himself an outline before talking with the "A Real Pain" star.
He said he rarely does that, and never for his films. The outline listed reasons Eisenberg should say yes.
One was that Eisenberg had already proven he could nail the part. Another was the strong scenes the role would offer.
The effort did not change the outcome. Eisenberg did tell Sorkin the talks brought him closer to reconsidering than he had expected. Sorkin said that pleased him.
Money was not a factor either. Sorkin said he knew what the studio offered.
He said Eisenberg is not motivated by money and may see it as a drawback.
He added that Eisenberg worries about raising his children with too much wealth.
Eisenberg's decision has been a major talking point ahead of the film's release. "The Social Reckoning" opens in theaters on Oct. 9.
Eisenberg addressed the issue in a separate interview with Variety. He said he is moving in different directions in his life.
He said he does not want to be tied to the character. He stressed that his reasons have nothing to do with the quality of the film.
"The Social Network" earned eight Oscar nominations and won three.
Those wins were for Sorkin's adapted screenplay, film editing and original score.
Eisenberg received a best actor nomination for playing Zuckerberg. Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake also starred.
"The Social Reckoning" features Strong, Mikey Madison, Jeremy Allen White, Billy Magnussen and Bill Burr.
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