Juliet Taylor does not give herself credit for .
In her over 40 years as top casting director behind so many classics, 鈥淎nnie Hall,鈥� 鈥淗eartburn鈥� and 鈥淪leepless in Seattle鈥� to name just a few, she did, technically give Streep her first film role. She gave many stars their big breaks. But Streep, she said, was always going to happen 鈥� the young stage actor was the talk of the town in New York as soon as she came on the scene. Taylor was simply the lucky one who happened to be casting for 鈥淛ulia,鈥� which didn鈥檛 conflict with a play.
Modesty is not antithetical to being a great casting director, though, a profession of observation, negotiation and nuance that operates mostly out of the public eye. It鈥檚 why Taylor's a little nervous about Sunday, when she鈥檒l be presented with at the film academy鈥檚 in a room full of Hollywood greats.
Recognition is long overdue for Taylor and her peers. Earlier this year, the film academy announced that it would add starting with films released in 2025.
鈥淭here鈥檚 so much people don鈥檛 know about casting actors,鈥� Taylor said. 鈥淥ne thing is we negotiate all the contracts and we cast a movie within a budget.鈥�
Casting wasn鈥檛 always the art that it is today. In the studio system, it was more of cattle call, an organizational rather than creative job. But Taylor began her career in 1968 at time of change, mentored by one of the pioneers behind the movement: Marion Dougherty, who scouted talent in off-Broadway plays and turned casting into a more selective, humane process. It was also a profession led by a lot of women. Dougherty used to joke that it鈥檚 because they didn鈥檛 get paid much.
The first movie Taylor led casting on was 鈥淭he Exorcist,鈥� a baptism by fire in many ways. Director had not gotten along with Dougherty on 鈥淭he Night They Raided Minsky鈥檚" and called the office with a strange request.
鈥淗e said, 鈥業 hear you have a really good assistant. Would you let her cast my movie?鈥欌�� Taylor said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if he did that as something that was not nice to do. That was terrifying for me. I was scared to death the entire time.鈥�
But she also found her voice on the film, discovering Linda Blair and taking a shot on Jason Miller, a playwright who she had a good feeling about.
鈥淗e had such a great face and he was such an interesting kind of brooding man,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 thought, 鈥楪ee let鈥檚 see if he鈥檒l come in and cry.鈥� He did and he got the part. That was exciting. That鈥檚 a casting director鈥檚 dream.鈥�
As a New Yorker, Taylor quickly established herself as a go-to casting director for the likes of , for whom she cast over 40 films, , Nora Ephron and . Among her over 100 credits, she did both 鈥淐lose Encounters of the Third Kind鈥� and 鈥淪chindler鈥檚 List鈥� for , 鈥淭axi Driver鈥� for Martin Scorsese, 鈥淏ig鈥� for Penny Marshall and 鈥淭erms of Endearment鈥� for James L Brooks.
鈥淪o many of them turned out so well because I worked for such wonderful directors,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd I don鈥檛 want to sound like I鈥檓 being falsely modest, but I do feel like so many of these people were just so talented you couldn鈥檛 miss it.鈥�
Some of her proudest moments were finding real people to fill out movies, like the lounge singer in 鈥淏roadway Danny Rose.鈥� There are also the actors who she didn鈥檛 give up on.
鈥淚 used to drag poor in for everything,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ack then also there were two different communities of actors and there was very little intermingling. New York actors came to New York to be in the theater. If they got a movie, that was thrilling, but they didn鈥檛 come thinking they were going to be a star.鈥�
For the most part, she and her longest running filmmaker partners, Allen and Nichols, were able to operate independently.
鈥淲oody made his movies on a very tight budget with the agreement that he wouldn鈥檛 be interfered with,鈥� she said. 鈥淢ike Nichols was so admired that people didn鈥檛 bother with him too much at first. But as his movies got more expensive, then you started to see a little bit more interference.鈥�
When 鈥淲orking Girl鈥� came along, for instance, the studio had ideas about needing bigger stars. She and Nichols wanted Alec Baldwin as the male lead, but he was too unknown for the studio and Harrison Ford was called in.
Taylor retired a few years ago and doesn't regret it. She鈥檒l still talk to some of her old director friends about projects here and there. But she鈥檚 mostly just enjoying going to the theater. And she鈥檚 excited that her profession is being celebrated.
鈥淭here鈥檝e been so many people who went before us who really deserved it,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very moving for me and the whole community. It鈥檚 been too long.鈥�
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
