David Fincher’s Mank features a number of actors playing icons of the 20th century – including not just Gary Oldman as Herman Mankiewicz, but also Arliss Howard as studio founder Louis B. Mayer, Charles Dance as publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst, Tom Burke as the legendary Orson Welles, Toby Leonard Moore as the brilliant David O. Selznick, and Tom Pelphrey as the great Joseph Mankiewicz. One person you almost surely haven’t heard of, however, is Rita Alexander, who was the titular’s writer’s secretary and played by Lily Collins. This is primarily because there is very little substantial information available the actual woman – which presented a certain challenge for the actor as she was getting into the role.
