Imperative will shoulder the additional costs of reshoots. Reshooting Spacey’s work as Getty is expected to take eight to 10 days, according to insiders, and will likely add at least $2.5 million to the film’s budget. It also requires bringing back stars Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Williams. Both actors were scheduled to have two weeks worth of reshoots written into their contracts, but they may have exceeded that amount of time already. If so, they will be paid their pro-rated weekly rate, according to agency sources and producers who have handled similar situations.

A character actor of Plummer’s caliber, boasting an Oscar and a long list of credits, can typically command between $250,000 and $400,000 for a supporting turn, according to knowledgeable insiders. Wahlberg and Williams both signed off on the decision to recast Spacey, and their schedules are relatively flexible. Williams is shooting “Venom,” a superhero movie being produced by Sony, the distributor of “All the Money in the World.” It’s in the studio’s interest to make Williams available, which it is doing. Wahlberg is not currently filming a project. He’s on the press tour for “Daddy’s Home 2,” which also makes it easier to slot him into the production.

One option not currently on the table, according to insiders, is to have Plummer do much of his work in front of a green screen and then work with visual effects firms to splice him into pre-existing footage. Most of Spacey’s scenes involve him interacting with only a few other actors or featured solo shots, so Scott and the producers believe that it would be more economical and effective to simply recreate the scenes with Plummer. Digitally inserting actors into footage can be tricky — it’s particularly challenging to make the lighting sync up, sources say. Filming will take place within the next two weeks and the goal is to have the picture locked by Dec. 15, according to insiders.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Where were you when you first heard about the allegations against Kevin Spacey?
RIDLEY SCOTT: I was finished with the film and was in [U.K. recording studio] Abbey Road finalizing the music. Someone was like: Guess what? And that’s where it began. I sat and thought about it and realized, we cannot. You can’t tolerate any kind of behavior like that. And it will affect the film. We cannot let one person’s action affect the good work of all these other people. It’s that simple.

Had you been happy with Kevin Spacey’s performance?
Totally. He’s a very talented man and I got on very well with him. I had no idea.

What’s the first call you make in a situation like this?
You have to know who you’re going to go for [to recast the role] and if he’s available. Chris [Plummer] was always on the list. So you find that out, but quietly, because you don’t want it going around. I flew into New York and met with [Plummer] and he said yes. So then we had to figure out if everyone else would be available to fit in these new days of shooting. Miraculously, they were. Before you can make the decision you have to make these quick phone calls around — not to the actors directly, but to the agents — saying there’s a possibility I may need some pickups [a.k.a. additional shooting days]. You don’t say why because of the gossip, but of course it was really for something much more significant.

It made big news when it broke.
[Laughs] Yes, I know. It was better to do it like this because once you inform the system, it’s everywhere. Once two people know what it’s about, bang, it’s all out there.

Did you have to call Kevin Spacey and tell him?
No. And he didn’t call me. If he had called me and said, “Hey, look, this is the way it is and I’m really sorry,” then I’d have handled it slightly differently.

If he had called and said all that, do you think you’d still have replaced him?
Yes. I’d have still done it. I would have said, “Yes, thank you for calling, but I have to move on.”

He was well-behaved on your set, I take it?
Well, I don’t know. You never see that. But you can’t condone that kind of behavior in any shape or form.

Have you been surprised by all these revelations coming out of Hollywood?
I think it was about time. Harvey [Weinstein] definitely was way overdue. There will still be a few more people out there gritting their teeth who are way overdue.

What was the studio’s reaction to all this?
They were like, “You’ll never do it. God be with you.” [Laughs]

But they’re holding the date of Dec. 22 for you anyway.
F—ing right.

Did you ever consider pushing the release date to 2018?
No.

Why not?
Because I know I can deliver. [Laughs] I move like lightning. I’m already two scenes ahead. It’s simple! If you know what you’re doing, you don’t need 19 takes. You do one for the actor, one for me. It’s all planned out. When you storyboard, you’ve already pre-filmed the movie in your head — the wide shots, close shots, establishing shots. You’ve gotten some of your weird ideas when you’re quietly sitting, storyboarding by yourself. After a while you learn to trust and listen to your intuition. And I listen to mine. I trust it.

You finish shooting in Rome on Nov. 29. How are you going to get everything finished in time to screen for Academy voters and other awards groups — not to mention the release date?
They’re going to see it. I may have to do a couple of technical things to make it land completely technically, but it’s really already done.

What do you mean?
I’ve done it. I’ve been shooting since Monday [Nov. 20] and in with the editor every night since then. We’re not dealing with celluloid anymore; it’s all digital, and I send [the footage each day] to [editor Claire Simpson] and she cuts it, and I can go in and look after shooting. Everything I’ve shot is already in [the final cut] up through yesterday morning.

When you directed Gladiator, Oliver Reed died during filming. Does this feel more or less challenging?
It’s less of a challenge, actually. With Ollie, I didn’t have anything of him except bits and pieces and I had to reassemble him digitally. This is a real person and I’m simply reshooting the scenes. We’ll finish next week and I’ll go straight into the editing room, but most of it will already be slotted in. We’ll smooth out any wrinkles, and bingo, we’re there.

So what’s going to be the biggest obstacle? Finishing on time?
Nope, I’m fine. I’ve already started recce [British military slang for reconnaissance] on another film. I’d like to do three a year, but we’re going to start the next one in February. I’m not sure if we’re keeping the title because the book is so important, but I’m doing [an adaptation] of The Cartel.

You started your career in advertising; surely you must have thought about how this gambit might serve in generating interest in this film.
Correct. I didn’t do it for that reason, but it never left my mind.

The story of the Getty family really shows how damaging wealth can be.
Sometimes I think being really rich is as bad as being really poor. Because you are facing a void every morning. There’s nothing to do. If you have wealth and no job, you sit there twiddling your thumbs and start drinking at lunchtime. At 4 p.m. you move on to something stronger, and before you know it you’re on to rock & roll. The greatest gift is being passionate about what you do. This [gestures around the set] is a gift for me. I’m busier than I’ve ever been — I’m in the office from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day.

And you turn 80 the day after you wrap.
Yeah, but I don’t think about that. It’s a number. Just a bloody number.

Golden Globes: Ridley Scott Scoots ‘All the Money in the World’ in Under the Wire (EXCLUSIVE)
By Kristopher Tapley @kristapley Kristopher Tapley

It was already a daunting task, but Ridley Scott looks to pull it off with time to spare.

On Nov. 20, the director set out to reshoot scenes from “All the Money in the World” with actor Christopher Plummer replacing Kevin Spacey in the wake of Spacey’s disastrous fall from grace amid allegations of sexual assault and harassment. Just two weeks later, on Dec. 4, a rough version of the film will be screened in New York for members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. in order to qualify for Golden Globes consideration, Variety has learned.

Filmmakers don’t typically screen unfinished films for the HFPA, but this is a unique situation. Sony and TriStar Pictures still plan to have a completed film ready to screen for domestic press in mid-December, as previously expected, perhaps even earlier than the original Dec. 15 date. But Monday is the deadline for screening to HFPA members, who received ballots on Nov. 24. Their voting deadline is Dec. 7 at 8 p.m. PT.

Production on “All the Money in the World” is expected to wrap in Rome on Thursday. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, conducted on Nov. 23, Scott noted that editor Claire Simpson has been working the new material into the finished film in tandem with the reshoots. “Everything I’ve shot is already in [the final cut] up through yesterday morning,” he said. The studio has also already released a new poster, TV spot, and trailer (see below) featuring Plummer.

The New York and Los Angeles critics groups will still not be able to see the film before their votes on Nov. 30 and Dec. 3, respectively, nor will members of the much larger Broadcast Film Critics Assn., who begin voting on Friday. (The BFCA’s Critics’ Choice Awards nominations will be announced on Dec. 6.)

With a Dec. 22 release date rapidly approaching, Golden Globe attention for “All the Money in the World” — assuming it receives any — could help at the box office. Both Scott and Plummer are three-time Golden Globe nominees. Plummer won the supporting actor prize for “Beginners” in 2012, while Scott’s film “The Martian.” rather infamously. claimed the top comedy honor in 2016.

The HFPA will reveal this year’s Golden Globe nominations on Dec. 11.