Hollywood Breaks Out Of Its Casting Rut
Hollywood Breaks Out Of Its Casting Rut
LATELY I'VE NOTICED MORE MOVIES doing a really good job with casting. The A-Team with Liam Neeson as Hannibal and Bradley Cooper as Face is a good example, as is the entire cast of Christopher Nolan's latest epic Inception (which, if you haven't seen yet, should make you feel bad about yourself.)
For a while, good casting seemed to be on the way out, replaced by hiring someone popular with the younger set. With the exception of a few choice movies, these actors always play the same character.
Jay Baruchel is the whiny, awkward nerd (How to Train Your Dragon, She's Out Of Your League, The Sorcerer's Apprentice).
Michael Cera is the awkwardly cute, talking-under-his-breath snarky nerd (Nick and Norah's Infinite Play List, Juno, Youth n Revolt). Justin Long is basically both of them put together (every movie made in the last five years, I swear he's in all of them).
And it's not just these three. Kristen Stewart is the awkwardly shy girl that the awkwardly quiet guy wants in every movie (the exception being that cinematic masterpiece Catch That Kid).
Need a cop? Call Mark Wahlberg.
Mexican "bad guy"? Dial up Danny Trejo.
Aging action star needed? Bruce Willis is on it!
My point is that for a while casting was getting lazy, and the same 10 people -- usually Judd Apatow’s clique – were in every new movie.
Thankfully, a few directors have recently taken dangerous gambles that have paid off.
At first glance, Ellen Page in Inception seems like the odd girl out next to big wigs Leo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon Levitt and Micheal Caine. The idea of putting Kitty Pryde in this smart thriller seems off, but Page holds her own and manages to even steal some big scenes.
Miranda Cosgrove, as the voice of the adorable orphan in Despicable Me, stands toe-to-toe with comedy veterans Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig and Jason Segal.
Most incomprehensively impressive of all is seeing Topher Grace and Adrian Brody as the serious bad-asses in Predators. That casting beats hiring Eric Bana as Bruce Banner as the weirdest casting choice ever.
I'm proud of the industry for taking risks again. And I hope it catches on because I honestly don’t want to see Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner in the Avengers. I don't want to see “Shark Boy” Taylor Lautner playing Wolverine in X-Men First Class. I sure as hell don't want to see a bunch of white kids playing the clearly Asian and Inuit characters in Avatar: the Last Airbender.
You know what I do want to see? Seth Rogan as the Green Hornet.
Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galafianakis at each other’s throats in what looks like a remake of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.
And I definitely want to see some more Topher Grace awesomeness, just not as Eddie Brock. We’ve all have had enough of that, don't you agree?
Marc Sakol falls head first into video games, watches every movie ever made and writes for his blog, Sarcasm Not Included.
Tags: Film
