[imagesource: 20th Century Studios]

Kenneth Branagh has not managed to get it right in terms of the actors he casts in his Agatha Christie adaptations.

Murder on the Orient Express featured Johnny Depp, which was hard to watch after Amber Heard’s allegations of domestic abuse came to light.

Now, the director’s follow-up, Death on the Nile, has not one, but three actors steeped in scandal ahead of its release on Friday (February 11).

As The Daily Beast notes, this “collection of scandals” that piled up coincidentally could threaten to overshadow the well-crafted Hercule Poirot (Christie’s favourite detective) murder mystery.

The trailer, before we move on:

Armie Hammer, Russell Brand, and Letitia Wright are all in terribly hot water right now, with Hammer’s presence being the most troubling.

That’s because he was embroiled in multiple allegations of sexual abuse, including alleged discussions of rape, slave fantasies, cannibalism fantasies, blood-sucking, and mutilation.

Also, in December, he reportedly completed a month-long stint in rehab for drug abuse.

One accuser, Effie, said that she thought he was going to kill her during a particularly terrifying encounter, saying that “I was completely in shock, and I couldn’t believe that someone I loved did that to me.”

The actor and his lawyer have rubbished the claims, but once you’re associated with such nightmarish allegations, it’s tough to shake them.

He has already been dropped from a number of films, including Shotgun Wedding, The Offer, and Next Goal Wins, while Death on the Nile was reportedly considering recasting his role or digitally editing him out.

But he remains a central character in the movie swarming with controversy.

Israeli actress Gal Gadot, who plays heiress Linnet Ridgeway Doyle with Hammer (Simon Doyle) as her husband, also received serious scrutiny as she outwardly expressed her support for Israel regarding the conflict with Palestine:

“Israel deserves to live as a free and safe nation,” Gadot wrote at the time. “Our neighbours deserve the same.”  The actress later disabled comments on the post as online vitriol grew.

Russell Brand and Letitia Wright are in hot water for promoting anti-vaccine views:

Brand, whose YouTube channel styles him as something of a provocateur who’s “just asking questions,” has spent months using his platform to spread vaccine skepticism. He’s also railed against vaccine mandates…

Wright has denied sharing anti-vaxx views… [but] landed herself in trouble by sharing a video titled “COVID-19 Vaccine, Should We Take It?”

The video, from Light London Church leader Tomi Arayomi, was rife with misinformation about COVID-19, the pandemic, and vaccines.

It is uncertain whether Death on the Nile‘s group of embattled stars will compromise the film and leave it wanting at the box office. Based on the reviews, it might go down in flames.

The Guardian gave it two stars, saying that “the (good part of the) ensemble cast can’t keep this stale and two-dimensional whodunnit afloat”.

[source:dailybeast]