Ellen Page Bails on Drag Me to Hell

A while back we reported on Sam Raimi latest flick, Drag Me to Hell, the directors return to horror. It was then reported that Ellen Page had signed on to star in the movie. It now seems that the academy nominated actress as pulled out. Scheduling conflicts are the official reason for the young actress’s departure, but there are rumors floating around that Page didn’t like the most recent draft of the script. There are also reports that her recent Oscar nomination likely played a role in her decision.

I think it would have been a really great fit for the movie, but I’m sure Raimi will still find the right person for the role.

Official announcement comes from Variety:

Ellen Page has dropped out of Sam Raimi’s supernatural thriller “Drag Me to Hell” due to scheduling conflicts.

The Ghost House Pictures and Mandate Pictures project was slated to start lensing March 17 in Los Angeles but has been postponed indefinitely due to a possible SAG strike.

The busy thesp, who had signed a flurry of deals in the wake of her Oscar nomination for “Juno,” will next star in Mandate’s psychological thriller “Peacock” and then segue to Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, “Whip It,” also for Mandate.

“We were racing to start production so that we could accommodate Ellen’s schedule,” Ghost House and Mandate said in a joint statement. “But like so many other productions trying to start before the potential SAG strike date, this one needed more time, and we had to push back the start of production.”

Raimi and his brother Ivan are penning “Drag Me to Hell.”