Timothy Olyphant Makes Shock U-Turn on The Adventures of Cliff Booth Casting

Timothy Olyphant stirred the pot about popping back in as James Stacy for David Fincher's The Adventures of Cliff Booth, then immediately turned around and grabbed a mop. Classic rumor boomerang: he sparked it, everyone ran with it (some folks even treated it like a done deal), and now he says... not so fast.

The walk-back

Asked by Screen Rant if he could say anything about The Adventures of Cliff Booth, Olyphant played keep-away and gave this:

No, I appreciate you asking. I'm in a lovely island of Nantucket working on a thing called Five-Star Weekend with America's favorite, Jennifer Garner. The Fincher thing, my involvement in that, I think that's just a rumor that I started. I have not stepped foot on that set, but if and when I do, I'll report back to you.

So: he hasn't been on the set. Also: he may have literally launched the rumor himself. Which, honestly, respect.

What he said before

This is where it gets fun. On Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend, he sounded like a guy who was trying to say yes without actually saying yes:

I don't know, I don't know, I don't know! I don't know, let's see. I'm hoping I'm in it. Uh…I think it could be good. You never know. It only is what it is…But my understanding is that I'm in it.

Translation: he either hasn't signed, is playing coy, or got a follow-up phone call from Fincher and decided to walk it back. And yes, the project is being tied to Fincher of all people, which is a curveball in itself.

So is he in or not?

Right now, Olyphant's official position is Schrodinger's casting: he's not on the set, but he also thinks he's in it. That leaves room for everything from "the deal isn't done" to "he's keeping it quiet until cameras roll."

In the meantime, he's actually in Nantucket shooting Five-Star Weekend with Jennifer Garner. That part is real.

If he returns as James Stacy

If Olyphant does slide back into James Stacy, the character would be in a very specific spot: Stacy had recently lost his left arm and left leg in a motorcycle accident. That's a heavy detail, and it would shape however Fincher and company use him in this Cliff Booth story.

Anyway, that's where things stand: rumor born, rumor walked back, door still open. What do you think — is Olyphant actually coming back for The Adventures of Cliff Booth? And if he does, how would you want to see James Stacy worked into it?