There are a lot of things that change in The Accountant 2 when compared to the original, but the recasting of a single main character from the first movie makes a particularly large impact on the film. Between the return of Jon Bernthal as Braxton and the addition of Daniella Pineda as new character Anaïs, The Accountant 2’s cast is already brimming with incredible talent. And the possibility of Anna Kendrick’s return in The Accountant 3 suggests that trend will continue well into the hopefully long future of the franchise.

However, The Accountant 2 also feels like a very new animal. The story’s stakes are much higher from the very first scene onward, including the death of a major character and the search for an enigmatic ᴀssᴀssin with unknown ties to the movie’s overarching mystery. The stakes are high enough that Ben Affleck’s Chris couldn’t possibly take on the story’s main threat without help, and one character in particular plays a sizable role in helping him reach The Accountant 2’s ending. But for those who saw the original, that character might look a little bit different this time around.

Allison Robertson Plays Justine In The Accountant 2 Instead Of Alison Wright

The Recasting Is Handled With A Slight Twist

Given the long gap between The Accountant and The Accountant 2, it stands to reason that the franchise would undergo some changes. A lot can happen in the span of eight years, and one of the biggest changes is that the handler and expert hacker who helps Chris during his missions is now played by Allison Robertson. It doesn’t take long to notice, either, seeing as Justine spends much more time onscreen in the sequel after only appearing in the flesh as a surprise reveal at the very end of the first movie.

However, while Alison Wright may not technically appear in The Accountant 2, that’s not to say that she’s been entirely replaced. Although Justine’s first seen intercepting Medina’s call to Harbor Neuroscience when the new FinCEN director is searching for Christian Wolff, it becomes immediately clear the first time she speaks on the phone that her computer voice is still played by Alison Wright. In this way, the movie makes the best of its recasting by still keeping the original actor around to ensure one of the character’s most recognizable features remains intact.

The Accountant 2 Recast Justine For Better Autistic Representation

Her Inclusion Resolves A Mild Controversy

While many fans were undoubtedly excited about the sequel, the franchise debut was a bit more divisive than some may remember. In particular, many of The Accountant’s reviews found the movie’s portrayal of autism offensive. This left the sequel in something of a bind. Although the reviews largely focused on Chris due to Justine’s minimal role in the film, the chances of Hollywood greenlighting a sequel without Ben Affleck would have been slim to none. Although they could make improvements to his character, any recasting would have to be focused elsewhere.

That’s where Allison Robertson comes in. She’s on the spectrum in real life, so her portrayal of Justine brings a taste of realism to the film. This isn’t to say that they represented every facet of the character through casting. The primary difference between Allison Robertson and her character is that Justine is nonverbal, whereas Robertson is not. However, her real-life experiences with autism allow her deeper insight into the character that comes across incredibly well on the screen. In general, it just never hurts to hire an actor already equipped with a more deeply personal understanding of their character.

Why The Accountant 2’s Justine Recast Is So Important

It Changes The Movie On Both Sides Of The Camera

There were several ways The Accountant 2 could have addressed concerns about the original movie’s autistic representation without hiring Robertson. In fact, they could have taken a page from their reasons for why Anna Kendrick isn’t in The Accountant 2 and simply written off her character altogether. To a certain degree, writing Justine out of the sequel would make an arguable amount of sense, given Medina’s discomfort with her illegal hacking. It’s not entirely clear why Medina’s more bothered by this than by Christian’s violence, but she has an extremely strong reaction to it.

Granted, Jon Bernthal’s role in The Accountant 2 would have made that ridiculous, since he eventually pushes Medina past her breaking point when it comes to working with murderers. Either way, Robertson changes Justine in some rather notable respects. While the first movie portrayed Justine as someone who stims almost constantly, Robertson’s version of the character realistically stims when it makes the most sense for her character. She does it at the end of a particularly difficult hack, or when she worries dozens of children are about to be murdered.

This vital change to her character might have been made without recasting, but it might have felt awkward to see the same face portraying the character so differently. Semi-ironically, changing her face entirely makes it less jarring to see her engaging in slightly different behavior. And that’s something The Accountant 2 has to be careful with, since the sequel increases Justine’s screentime and gives her a team of child hackers who all land on different parts of the spectrum. Ben Affleck might play the protagonist, but Allison Robertson is the figurehead for all autistic representation in the movie.

What Allison Robertson Has Said About Playing Justine In The Accountant 2

Her Casting Was Meaningful For An Additional Reason

Most would never guess from the excellence of her performance, but this marks Allison Robertson’s feature debut. Given the increased importance of Justine’s role in The Accountant 2, it was absolutely vital for the filmmakers to cast someone who could perform at a high level. What makes their choice particularly interesting is that Robertson auditioned for The Accountant 2 without the help of a casting agency. Robertson revealed as much to the crowd after the movie’s premiere at SXSW. She said, as reported by Variety:

This was the best introduction to so-called Hollywood I could have ever had. I was a self-submit. And it was even more meaningful that they chose me for me versus any other avenues I might have gone through.

Since there are likely plenty of agents willing to work with actors on the spectrum, this makes Robertson’s casting all the more impressive. It solidifies that she wasn’t just cast for the sake of shoehorning in an inclusive role, but rather because she earned her part in The Accountant 2 on her own merit. This is also promising because The Accountant 3’s release timeline looks to be much shorter if the sequel performs well. With critics and audiences already leaning toward positive reviews, it hopefully won’t be long before Robertson returns to continue building on Justine’s character.

Source: Variety