If Woz’s comment about the scene from jOBS being ‘wrong’ was a body blow, then the news that he turned down the chance to work on the project because of a ‘crap’ script is a vicious left hook to the jaw. Wozniak also told The Verge that drugs weren’t really an issue as was depicted in the film, however he admitted that the casting was ‘very good’.
Woz:
I was approached early on [for JOBS]. I read a script as far as I could stomach it and felt it was crap. The Sony people got in contact with me too and in the end I went with them. You can’t do both [films] and be paid.
[…]
The early script did things like promote drugs in ways that were as foreign as the clip I saw. For example, it would have Jobs offering me drugs. I never saw Jobs do drugs nor had any offers from him.
If we ever discussed drugs, he would have known that I didn’t do them but that I basically approved of them and hung around with friends who did them (in college) so he wouldn’t have felt awkward talking about them with me. Frankly, we talked about our jobs and technology and things.
jOBS debuted at the Sundance Film Festival last night, with another Steve Jobs biopic from Sony Pictures and written by Aaron Sorkin due out later.
Woz did say that there were some positive aspects about jOBS, notably the ‘very good’ casting, however it’s clear where his preferences lie. I can’t wait to see exactly what the Sorkin version brings.
