Kate Winslet talked about The Holiday (2006) on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon where she shared how people loved the film and is still considered one of the best Christmas films of all time according to some people.
During the interview with Fallon, she stated she thought it was a fun reading as she and Cameron Diaz had already been cast at that point, had no idea that they were actually giving an audition.
Kate Winslet on The Holiday Casting and Audition
“I remember it extremely well. I really do” she further added, “We were told it was just a reading. I thought it was just a reading, like a fun reading of the script. I didn’t know it was an audition for the part. I am sorry you didn’t get it. I’m sorry if I happened to be mean or rude to you in any way…you were sick, very sick and obsessively hand sanitizing. I thought, ‘Okay he’s one of those people.’ You were very sick.”
After hearing him say his dialogue in a British accent, Kate was too stunned to speak as she thought it was an Australian.
“Robert Downey Jr. then did an English accent but I thought it was an Australian accent,” Winslet continued. “I thought, ‘That’s bad. That’s not going to work. Who is going to tell him that sounds dreadful?’’
As the audience giggled after seeing her reaction, Fallon came to save him as he tried to justify by explaining that he might have done an Australian accent on purpose even though the character was not Australian which he thought was really good. But Winslet begged to differ, as she continued to joke about how terrible the accent was.
Apart from Kate, Jimmy Fallon and Robert Downey Jr were also present there who unfortunately didn’t get the part. The role later on went to Jack Black and Jude Law.
Previously, the Oppenheimer actor revealed how he had to do a British accent in an audition for the classic 2006 comedy, The Holiday which was a failure for Downey as his attempt at doing a British accent didn’t go as well as he thought it would go. Last year, on The Howard Stern Show he mentioned that he gave the audition for the part even after knowing that Jude Law was perfect for the character.
Robert Downey Jr. on His Audition For The Holiday
Downey said, “[Jimmy and I] got called in just as seat fillers…[director Nancy Meyers] needed someone to read with the gals and we’re sitting there going, ‘It’s about to happen for us,’’ He felt like he had to do better than Jude Law and he did his best. Right after that Winslet told him That was the worst British accent I’ve ever heard.’ And I was like, ‘I’ll check out now, but I’m taking the gummy bears from the minibar.”
The Holiday (2006)
The Holiday is a 2006 romantic comedy-drama directed by Nancy Meyers starring Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, and Jack Black. Two women, Iris and Amanda from different countries decide to take a break from their love life and go on a vacation. They switch their cottages which leads them to find true love.
Iris settles in Amanda’s huge house but Amanda finds it hard to stay at her cottage. She decides to leave the next day that is when she meets Iris’s brother Graham (Jude Law). Iris also meets Arthur who is Amanda’s neighbour.
Although, Robert has played the accent game many times and over the years he sure has gotten better like when he did Sherlock in 2009 and Tropic Thunder in 2010. The Titanic actress made it clear that doing a British accent wasn’t really his forte back at the time. As the two [Kate and Jimmy] joked that now Robert Downey Jr is practically winning everything.
“It wasn’t that great …what a hoot. Here [Robert] is now winning everything [for ‘Oppenheimer’].”
