Christopher Nolan has collaborated with numerous talented actors throughout his multi-decade career. Even your superhero movies The Dark Knight the trilogy featured A-list talent. The Dark Knight earned Joker actor Heath Ledger a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, recognizing a performance that became one of the most iconic villain roles of all time. Nolan went on to do Startwhich starred incredible talents such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Cillian Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Caine and Marion Cotillard.
The strength of a suite of Nolan films was especially recognized last year Oppenheimer. The epic biopic was nominated for several awards for its performances, winning Oscars for Best Actor for Murphy and Best Supporting Actor for Robert Downey Jr.'s upcoming film. The Odysseywill be no exception when it comes to A-list casting, as early news mentioned the casting of Tom Holland, Matt Damon, Zendaya, and Robert Pattinson. Even one of Nolan's early works was cast perfectly, and its lead actor discusses how he made the choice.
Guy Pearce convinced Nolan to cast him in Memento
Bigger-name actors were considered for the role
Guy Pearce reveals how he ended up being cast Memory. The time-bending drama is Nolan's second feature, after Followingand was released in 2000. It features Pearce as a grieving man named Leonard who is experiencing severe amnesia following the murder of his wife. To find out who did this and get revenge, Leonard must rely on the photos he takes, the tattoos he gets on his body, and the unreliable kindness of others, in a story that rewinds time. Memory It helped put Nolan on the map, earning him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
Talking to Business InsiderPearce reveals how he was cast Memory. According to the actor, he was inspired by stories of other actors being endlessly "committed"to get a role. Upon meeting Nolan, Pearce really wanted to do the film and as a result called Nolan and said he was"I really want to do it [his] film." Nolan thanked him for letting him know and eventually gave the role to Pearce, but not before asking Brad Pitt first. Check out Pearce's full quote below:
BUSINESS INSIDER: If the myth is true, “Memento” is the opposite of what happened in “LA Confidential.” Instead of the director calling you, you called the director.
PEARCE: Well, I always read these stories about directors saying how committed actors were to getting a role: “They slept on my porch, I knew he was the one.” I remember reading this and thinking, "Does this really work?" So I read “Memento” and loved it, met with Chris and then watched “Following.” I was really locked in and wanted to do this.
So I went to my agent, Chris, and I told him, “I think I should call Chris Nolan just to let him know I'm really interested in doing this.” So I did and I said, "I'm sorry to do this, but by all accounts this seems to work in this town, I'm really looking forward to doing your movie, I'd really love to do it." And in typical Chris Nolan fashion, he just said, “Well, okay, thanks for letting me know.” I just felt like if other actors were in the running, he should have known that I really wanted to do it.
BUSINESS INSIDER: I believe actors like Charlie Sheen and Alec Baldwin were also in the running.
PEARCE: I have no idea. I remember Jeff Goldblum was in the mix and Brad Pitt was the first to ask. I felt like this script is so good that I'm going to lose it to a well-known actor, I have to raise my hand. Plus, I was cheap.
Our opinion on the cast of Memento
Memento was cast well
It's good that MemoryThe casting worked the way it did because the film changed Pearce and Nolan's careers. For the actor, this gave him visibility and helped boost his career. To Nolan, Memory really put him on the map as a director. It was Pearce's moving performance as Leonard that greatly helped the film, making it the modern classic it is known as today.
Source: Business Insider