The A.V. Club - Random Roles

Film: Random Roles:Tom Noonan

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0600

The actor: Tom Noonan leads a curious double life as a respected playwright/arthouse fixture and a sought-after character actor and villain in genre movies, particularly horror and suspense films. Noonan’s current feature, the atmospheric early-’80s-style fright flick The House Of The Devil, makes inspired use of the seeming incongruity between Noonan’s towering frame and the underlying gentleness of his manner and sonorous voice. So did Noonan’s breakout film, Michael Mann’s 1986 masterpiece Manhunter, which cast him as a killer pursued by William Petersen with help from Brian Cox’s Hannibal Lecter. Noonan won the ...

Film: Random Roles:Ricky Jay

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 -0600

The actor: Ricky Jay has racked up an impressive résumé, appearing in cult TV shows like Deadwood and X-Files and movies like Tomorrow Never Dies, Mystery Men, Boogie Nights, and many of the films of his good friend and collaborator David Mamet. But acting is really just a sideline for Jay, who is perhaps the world’s greatest living illusionist, the author of several books, a popular live performer, and one of the brains behind Deceptive Practices, a which provides consulting expertise on a wide range of arcane matters. Jay is currently touring the country with Ricky Jay: A ...

Film: Random Roles:Ben Gazzara

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0600

The actor: Ben Gazzara, who studied with The Actors Studio in the ‘50s before moving on to Broadway—where he originated the role of Brick in Tennessee Williams’ Cat On A Hot Tin Roof—and then, inevitably, Hollywood. Gazzara starred in two TV series (Arrest And Trial and Run For Your Life) in the ‘60s, but didn’t really find his niche until he connected with indie auteur John Cassavetes, who cast Gazzara in three of his best ‘70s films (Husbands, The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie, and Opening Night) and helped establish the air of grumbly, barely contained menace ...

Film: Random Roles:Penelope Ann Miller

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:24:00 -0500

The actor: Penelope Ann Miller, who began her career on Broadway in the ’80s, then became a Hollywood “It Girl” in the early ’90s, thanks to hits like The Freshman and Kindergarten Cop. Miller migrated to character parts and television roles over the past decade. She’ll soon be seen in the new TNT series Men Of A Certain Age, and can currently be seen in the motocross melodrama Free Style. Free Style (2009)—“Jeanette” Penelope Ann Miller: I play a single mother for the first time. Wait… no. Is it the first time? I shouldn’t say that. Anyway ...

DVD: Random Roles:Bronson Pinchot

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Bronson Pinchot will forever be best known as the zany, loveable goofball immigrant from the hit ’80s sitcom Perfect Strangers, but he’s racked up an impressive résumé of character roles in film, stage, and television. A Yale graduate, Pinchot made his film debut in the 1983 cult classic Risky Business, and went on to appear in a slew of memorable ’80s films, including 1984’s Beverly Hills Cop, where he stole scenes from Eddie Murphy; 1984’s The Flamingo Kid; and Martin Scorsese’s brilliant 1985 dark comedy After Hours. But Perfect Strangers made Pinchot a household name ...

TV: Random Roles:Rachel Dratch

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: Rachel Dratch started her career by performing sketch comedy at Second City, then went on to spend seven seasons as a utility player on Saturday Night Live, where she found love for her “Debbie Downer” and Boston teen characters. Since then, Dratch has been a go-to bit player in all sorts of comedies, including Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Ugly Betty, and 30 Rock. (She was initially cast in the Jenna role, but was replaced after the pilot.) She recently appeared in the Nia Vardalos film My Life In Ruins as a stereotypical American tourist. My Life In Ruins ...

Film: Random Roles:Richard Dreyfuss

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The Actor: Richard Dreyfuss, an actor who rocketed to super-stardom thanks to memorable roles in iconic classics like 1973’s American Graffiti, 1975’s Jaws, and 1977’s Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. He also picked up an Oscar for Best Actor—at 30 he was the youngest man ever to win the award at the time—playing a struggling thespian opposite Marsha Mason in 1977’s The Goodbye Girl. After wrestling with drug addiction in the late ’70s and early ’80s, Dreyfuss scored a huge comeback with 1986’s Down And Out In Beverly Hills. Memorable roles in ...

Film: Random Roles:Paul Schneider

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Although he’s largely been confined to character roles, Paul Schneider has left a mark in movies ranging from the twisted fable Lars and the Real Girl to Cameron Crowe’s floptastic Elizabethtown, in which he anchored the few scenes that actually rang true. Along with his North Carolina School Of The Arts classmate David Gordon Green, Schneider broke through with George Washington and All the Real Girls, graduating from bit player to lead and co-writer with the latter film and subsequently striking out on his own. Nothing he’s done previously, however has suggested the range demonstrated by the ...

TV: Random Roles:David Duchovny

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: David Duchovny, who became a star in the ’90s playing an FBI agent investigating the world’s freakiest mysteries on The X-Files. He went on to star in big-budget movies and low-budget indies, often showing a wry sense of humor even when working on the darkest material. He also wrote and directed his own 2004 feature film, House Of D. Duchovny currently stars on the Showtime series Californication as a conflicted writer and serial philanderer; the second season has just been released on DVD, and the third season launches on Showtime later this year. Californication (2007-present)—“Hank Moody ...

Film: Random Roles:Fisher Stevens

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:01:00 -0500

The actor: Producer-director Fisher Stevens, who moonlights as a popular character actor best known for his roles as Steve Guttenberg’s sidekick in Short Circuit and a computer whiz in 1995’s Hackers, and just seen in an extended guest stint on Lost. Stevens recently produced the crowd-pleasing, anti-dolphin-poaching documentary The Cove. The A.V. Club: How did you get involved with The Cove? Fisher Stevens: I’m a big scuba diver, and I dive with my friend Jim Clark, one of the founders of Netscape. One day he introduced me to this guy, Louie Psihoyos, who was a photographer ...

Film: Random Roles:Austin Pendleton

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 11:38:00 -0500

The actor: A Yale graduate and accomplished playwright, stage actor, and theatrical director, Austin Pendleton has lent his daft, sweet, quirky presence and voice to star-studded extravaganzas (1968’s Skidoo, 1970’s Catch-22, 1974’s The Front Page, 1979’s The Muppet Movie, 1980’s First Family), television shows (Oz and Homicide, both executive produced by Tom Fontana), a smash-hit Pixar cartoon (Finding Nemo), and a slew of plays, some wildly successful, some outright disastrous. Pendleton appeared in a key supporting role as a married professor infatuated with an eccentric protégé in 2007’s Lovely By Surprise, which just ...

TV: Random Roles:William Sanderson

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: William Sanderson, a veteran character actor best known for his small frame, deadpan expression, and monotone Southern drawl, which he’s put to good use in cult films like Blade Runner and Fletch, and popular TV series like Deadwood and Newhart. Currently, Sanderson can be seen in the HBO series True Blood, which returns for its second season on June 14. Season one just hit DVD. Fight For Your Life (1977)—“Jessie Lee Kane” William Sanderson: It was banned in England. Looking back now, I feel a little like an actress who took her clothes off early in ...

TV: Random Roles:Jane Lynch

Tue, 19 May 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: Jane Lynch, an actress who toiled in relative obscurity until she appeared in Christopher Guest’s mockumentary Best In Show in 2000 and subsequently became a go-to comedian for nearly every comic troupe working in Hollywood today: the Judd Apatow crew, the State folks, the Will Ferrell/Adam McKay group, the Arrested Development circle, and so on. Lynch just wrapped the first season of the Starz original series Party Down, and can be seen this summer in the big-screen comedy Julie & Julia. She’ll also be a regular this fall on the new Fox series Glee, which will ...

Film: Random Roles:Charles Napier

Mon, 18 May 2009 15:37:00 -0500

The actor: Charles Napier is the ultimate tough-guy character actor. In his 40 years in the business, he’s been a stock member of Russ Meyer and Jonathan Demme’s repertory companies, the eccentric boss on The Critic, the Blues Brothers’ rival, Rambo’s arch-nemesis, The Incredible Hulk’s growl, and a hippie on Star Trek. But that was all just a warm-up to his most challenging role to date: a victim of Ron Jeremy’s evil sentient killer penis in the new horror-comedy One Eyed Monster, which has just been released on DVD. Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls ...

Film: Random Roles:George Wendt

Tue, 05 May 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: George Wendt, who came up in the Chicago improv scene in the mid ’70s before moving to Los Angeles and launching a career as a character actor and sitcom staple—including over a decade holding down a barstool on the hit show Cheers. Wendt can currently be seen in the quirky indie comedy Saturday Morning, in which he plays a helpful stranger who guides staid yuppie Joey Piscopo (son of the Saturday Night Live veteran) on a journey through the strange society of folks who wake up early on the weekends. Saturday Morning (2007)—“Harold” George Wendt: I ...

TV: Random Roles:Henry Winkler

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: Henry Winkler, best known as Arthur Fonzarelli from Happy Days, is firmly planting his foot in the modern comedy landscape. His turn as family attorney Barry Zuckerkorn in Arrested Development was well-received, and he’s also appeared in a bunch of recent Adam Sandler movies. He joins Arrested Development showrunner Mitch Hurwitz—along with most of the show’s cast—as a voice actor in the animated show Sit Down, Shut Up, which debuted last Sunday. Sit Down, Shut Up (2009)—“Willard Deutschebog” Henry Winkler: The first time I saw it was when we did an evening at ...

Film: Random Roles:Alfre Woodard

Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:33:00 -0500

The actor: Since garnering an Oscar nomination for her role in 1983’s Cross Creek, Alfre Woodard has gone from deep space in Star Trek: First Contact to Desperate Housewives’ Wisteria Lane, where she spent most of her time trying to keep others from discovering the man chained up in her basement. But she has made the greatest impression playing a succession of strong, independent, sometimes fatally flawed women, from the substance abusers of Down In The Delta and Holiday Heart to the matriarch of a bohemian family in Spike Lee’s Crooklyn. In American Violet, currently in theaters, she ...

Film: Random Roles:Joe Mantegna

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: Joe Mantegna first burst into the public consciousness as the favorite leading man of playwright/screenwriter David Mamet, who gave Mantegna a career-making role in Glengarry Glen Ross on Broadway, then cast him as the lead in Mamet’s first two films: the 1987 cult classic House Of Games and its well-received 1988 follow-up, Things Change. Mantegna continued to work with Mamet, most recently in 2008’s Redbelt, but he also found considerable success outside their partnership. He earned a place in the hearts of Simpsons fans as Fat Tony, Springfield’s Mafia don, and played less-comic mobsters ...

Film: Random Roles:Wallace Shawn

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: Wallace Shawn has a curiously bifurcated career as an incendiary playwright whose work often digs into dark, troubling subject matter, and as a popular, hard-working character actor/voice artist who specializes in playing milquetoast bumblers and sniveling schemers. Not bad for a man who never set out to be an actor in the first place. Shawn made a memorable impression as a sexual dynamo in Woody Allen’s 1979 classic Manhattan. The son of legendary New Yorker editor William Shawn, Wallace has worked steadily in film and television since then, most memorably in the 1981 cult My Dinner ...

Film: Random Roles:Dennis Farina

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The actor: Dennis Farina, a former Chicago cop who served as a consultant to director Michael Mann, then became an in-demand character actor, making memorable appearances in the likes of Midnight Run, Get Shorty, and Snatch. Farina can currently be seen on DVD in Bottle Shock, a comedy based on the true story of a California winery that beat the French wine establishment in a blind taste test in 1976. Bottle Shock—“Maurice” (2008) Dennis Farina: A lot of fun to do. It was a beautiful location up in Napa, in Sonoma. I liked the script right away. I am ...