"I couldn't possibly fail to disagree with you less."
8 August 2005Typecasting and then someJames Woods, interviewed by Brantley Bardin in the September issue of Premiere:
[A] cultural problem within our industry is that if you're a white, heterosexual, middle-aged man, there's only one part for you: the asshole villain. You know, I'd really like to think that those of us who also wrote Hamlet and put men on the moon might have something else to contribute in this postfeminist world.
Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy. Listen to yourself. Why, Hamlet is nothing more than an apologia for domestic violence. (Poor Ophelia is driven to suicide, and it's all Hamlet's fault for being such an asshole. Villain, even.) And don't even mention the Apollo program. Do you realize how much that cost? Imagine all the school lunches we could have bought, all the endangered species we could have saved. [Geez, this is easy.] Posted at 6:00 PM to Almost YogurtOh piffle. He's just pissed because he doesn't meet the Hollywood male standard for beauty. Please, Sean Connery got Catherine Zeta-Jones as a love interest even when he was like 107. But James Woods, while a fine actor, is no Sean Connery. It's not necessarily true that you will only be bitcast as an asshole villain if you're a white, heterosexual, middleaged man. You can also get the opportunity to be a bumbling, idiotic, totally clueless husbandad. The part hasn't changed since the Dagwood Bumstead comic strip was first printed. Face it: White, Hetero, Middle-Aged Man is Dad and always will be, and therefore hated by the sort of juvenile minds that go into showbiz. Posted by: Andrea Harris at 10:19 PM on 8 August 2005It's great being the White, Hetero, Middle-Aged Man. Dinosaurs rule! Harummph. Posted by: chris Muir at 10:45 PM on 8 August 2005I do have to admit that the white, heterosexual middle-aged man is often portrayed as a putz in mainstream media; even more than is deserved. You dinosaurs can still rule! Posted by: Babs at 11:22 PM on 8 August 2005He's just pissed because he doesn't meet the Hollywood male standard for beauty. These days the Hollywood male standard for beauty is probably best exemplified by a woman anyway. Posted by: McGehee at 11:09 AM on 9 August 2005I always thought that being in your 40's or 50's counted as middle aged. So... James Woods should call up Johnny Depp, Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Nic Cage, Bruce Willis, John Cusack, Robin Williams, etc... and ask them about all the asshole villians roles. Oh, wait... maybe it's just that James Woods *is* an asshole. Posted by: aldahlia at 8:33 PM on 9 August 2005While I wouldn't presume to know Woods as Ahdelphia does, I can say that Woods makes an exceptional villain. He may be the nicest guy in the world, but he does villain *really* well. Posted by: R. Alex at 10:25 PM on 9 August 2005Heh. Woops. When I can't quite remember a name I type in whatever I remember it as and correct it later. Forgot to do that second part. No offense intended! Posted by: R. Alex at 7:07 AM on 10 August 2005None taken at all. I shouldn't have picked something so darned hard to spell... Posted by: aldahlia at 7:17 PM on 10 August 2005 |