Busy “Juno” star won’t be in “Spider-man” director Sam Raimi’s latest project

By Matthew B. Zeidman

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 3/3/08 – Not even pregnancy could make Ellen Page’s character drop out of high school in “Juno,” but a looming actors’ strike has forced the 21-year-old star to drop out of “Drag Me to Hell,” the latest project of “Spider-man” director Sam Raimi.

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

Page originally intended to fit in filming at the end of the month, but the delay in production forced her to choose between the horror film and two other high-profile projects (comedy “Whip It!” directed by Drew Barrymore and thriller “Peacock” co-starring Cillian Murphy).

While the union’s labor contract runs through June 30, the recent Writers Guild of America strike has put Hollywood studios on edge, with most racing to shoot new features before a possible repeat of the crippling work stoppage. Waiting for Page to finish filming “Whip It!” and “Peacock” would have risked suspending production on “Drag Me to Hell” indefinitely.

Page’s next release, “Smart People,” a comedy also featuring Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker and Thomas Haden Church, hits theatres on April 11.