The Great Gatsby has star-studded premiere in Sydney, Australia News Limited catches all the stars before the Australian launch of Baz Luhrmann's movie spectacular, The Great Gatsby. ALMOST two years after the cameras whirred into action, Baz Luhrmann's much-anticipated and critically-divisive re-imagining of F.Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby finally came full circle in Sydney - the city which provided its backdrop. In cold and wet conditions, guests tried mostly in vain to make their way down a crowded red carpet without a drenching - with mixed success. Some, including Richard Wilkins, almost toppled over on the wet marble floor once inside while a dripping Kylie Gilles was overheard exclaiming: "I'm a drowned rat." A damp-looking Joel Edgerton led the cast and crew down the red carpet at Fox Studios under an array of see-through umbrellas. Jack Thompson on the red carpet of the Australian premiere of The Great Gatsby. Edgerton was joined by the film's British star Carey Mulligan, US actor Tobey Maguire and local breakout starlet Elizabeth Debicki. Asked if they would ever work with Luhrmann again, both Maguire and Mulligan replied: "Of course." "If he called me, that is," Mulligan added. Joel Edgerton, Baz Luhrmann and Elizabeth Debicki at the Australian premiere of The Great Gatsby in Sydney. Photo: Craig Greenhill/Daily Telegraph Fittingly it was the Sydney born-and bred actor Edgerton who led the way in the absence of the film's star Leonardo DiCaprio who, presumably exhausted after a week of partying at an array of Parisian nightclubs, dropped out of the Sydney unveiling. And also venturing out on in the wet and wild were Lachlan and Sarah Murdoch, Joel Madden, Delta Goodrem, Darren McMullen, David Campbell, Ita Buttrose, Colette Dinnigan, Reece Mastin and Carla Zampatti. Carey Mulligan, Toby Maguire and producer Catherine Martin on the red carpet in Sydney. Picture: Craig Greenhill/Daily Telegraph It was a weird twist of irony that the Harbour City turned on the first wet night in weeks for the lavish curtain-raiser. One little ray of sunshine, however, has been the film's commercial success. Premiering in the US a fortnight ago, The Great Gatsby is on track to crack $140 million at the worldwide box office this weekend - projected to climb to $150 million by next week. It is Luhrmann's biggest commercial success by far, easily exceeding his previous best of Moulin Rouge! which grossed $57 million. Critics, however, have been mixed on the Moet-soaked extravaganza that is currently placed third on the US box office ladder behind Iron Man 3 and Star Trek: Into Darkness. Gatsby scored just a 49 per cent approval rating - falling in the "rotten" category on film review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. Britain's Observer newspaper summed up the general sentiment of the negative reviews, declaring: "It is the sheer size, overstatement and noise, both visually and aurally, that sinks Luhrmann's picture." However, Sydneysider Debicki is being hailed by critics in her film debut. An unknown chosen from hundreds of wannabes, Debicki was widely lauded for her portrayal of the sporty but sultry Jordan Baker. Great Gatsby Premiere: @SydConfidential In position for #Gatsby. Photo: Twitter "I paid a lot of money for those (reviews)," she joked on the red carpet in Sydney. On a serious note though, it's very encouraging. Leo had his reasons for missing Sydney party 7.30pm: GREAT Gatsby director Baz Luhrmann said Leonardo DiCaprio couldn't make the Australian premiere of The Great Gatsby for personal reasons. "And I know he made the right decision," he said. He shouldn't be here. Luhrmann last spoke with DiCaprio at Cannes Film Festival and says they discussed his trip back to Sydney, where The Great Gatsby was filmed. "There are things in your own personal life where you've got to draw a line and we talked about it," he said. He did exactly the right thing in my opinion. DiCaprio, who plays the lead role of Jay Gatsby and also starred in Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet, released a statement this week citing a "schedule change." Saluting our finest stars 6.45pm: BAZ Luhrmann also has tipped his hat to Australian film icon Jack Thompson. The veteran actor plays a doctor in the big budget film that was shot in Sydney and stars Hollywood heavyweights Leonardo Dicaprio, Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire. He's one of many Australian actors who appear in the film, which is having its Sydney premiere at Fox Studios tonight. "He's a great great icon and a great friend," Luhrmann said of Thompson. He continued: "I think indeed our American cousins have been a great part of the venture but every person in Sydney stars in the movie. I am proud of everybody. I'm proud of this city, this state and this country for taking such a great piece of literature and making this movie here. Maguire admitted he was surprised the classic American story was to be told in Sydney. When cast it was originally to be shot in New York but production moved to Sydney because of costs. Maguire's response to the Australian base was: "How are we going to pull that off, but that we did." Of returning to FoxStudios, Mulligan said: "I'm feeling really nostalgic, as we were driving up I thought this is how I'd go to work every day." Wearing a Nina Ricci top and Lanvin pants, Mulligan said she relished the opportunity to wear lavish costumes and Tiffany jewelry in the film. It was a girls dream come true. Among the stars walking the red carpet were Delta Goodrem, Demi Harman, Ita Buttrose and Kate Ritchie. Rain greets stars' arrival 6.08pm:IT was a case of red carpet deja vu tonight for the premiere of The Great Gatsby. As the mammoth ruby rug was rolled out outside Hoyts at the Entertainment Quarter, so too rolled the dark grey clouds above. As the rain started coming down, it was eerily familiar to the French premiere of the camp 3-D epic, which was drenched in water as it opened the Cannes Film Festival last week. Ironically, it was rain that halted production of the Sydney film shoot of Gatsby in December 2011 during our "lost summer," leading to a budget blow out reportedly worth $180 million. Furthermore it was the same case for Baz Luhrmann's last premiere in Sydney. The launch of Australia in 2008, which saw a section of George St shut down for stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman to greet, was similarly soaked in rain. Tonight's big 1920's-themed Gatsby gala - featuring cast members like Carey Mulligan and Tobey and locals like Rebecca Gibney and Kate Ritchie - is set to be the biggest premiere the city has seen since. Filmed in Sydney, Gatsby has received some lacklustre reviews from the critics, but it has opened with a box office bang. "This morning internationally we were No.1 in the world against Iron Man and Star Trek," Luhrmann said during an interview with the ABC.