Today, Joan Bennett is best remembered as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard, the mistress of Collinwood on the Gothic supernatural hit "Dark Shadows" (1966-71). During the exhaustive pre-production phase of "Gone With the Wind" (1939), thousands of actresses were interviewed and tested. Joan Bennett was one of the few who were seriously considered and actually made a screen test, which still survives today. In her portrayal of a conniving bitch in "Scarlet Street", we get a glimpse of how Joan would have been had she played southern vixen Scarlett O'Hara. Had producer David O. Selznick gone for star power rather than interpretation, Joan Bennett might have been cast. Joan would have been just "adequate" as Scarlett, but not perfect. It's a credit to Selznick's remarkable intuition that he took a huge risk by casting Vivien Leigh, a British actress virtually unknown to American audiences, as Scarlett. "Scarlet Street" is a well-made film that I would recommend. Edward G. Robinson and Duryea also give strong performances.
Review of Scarlet Street
Scarlet Street
(1945)
A glimpse at how Joan Bennett would have been had she played Scarlett O'Hara
12 August 2017