Is Rachel McAdams Right for True Detective? Does it Matter?

By Reuben Levine | Nov 25, 2014

At this point the casting announcement of Rachel McAdams wasn’t exactly a surprise. She’d been in the running for a number of months, and even though confirmation had been lacking it was a forgone conclusion that she would fill in the final lead role. Since McAdam’s casting has come so late in the game as far as production start time goes, she has seemingly missed out on the same level of scrutiny that Vince Vaughn received when his casting was announced.

Much like Vaughn’s, McAdams’ filmography doesn’t make her an obvious choice for True Detective. And at this stage in the game, whether or not she appears right for the role hardly matters; production is moving forward and there would be no time to even consider a “what if” scenario in which another actor took the reins. It’s happening.

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The great thing about True Detective is that it has so far built a reputation around casting actors in roles that aren’t obvious choices. This at first seemed like a bold movie with Matthew McConaughey, but by now it’s become routine. Something to be expected.

Eventually that may get old, but right now such a move still has just enough pull to keep us excited.

The true test of Rachel McAdams will come on screen when True Detective premieres. You know, whenever that may be. Right now she’s just another in a list of actors that have appeared to be, shall we say, mismatch for the part. It’s not as obvious as Matthew McConaughey or Vince Vaughn, but it’s there.

McAdams is defiantly one of the X factors of season two. As one of the four leads, it’s a safe bet that she’s going to have a significant amount of screen time. Frankly, True Detective has yet to really dive into strong female territory, so there are some hopes being pinned on her performance.

We’re excited to see Rachel Mcadams take on something challenging and different. She may not be an obvious choice, but that hasn’t stopped True Detective yet.

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