Christoph Waltzes Into “Green Hornet” Villain Role

“Basterds” breakout star Christoph Waltz. 

Christoph Waltz has received nonstop raves for his turn as a verbally dexterous Nazi in Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds”; even people who didn’t like the film as a whole have loved his performance (I think he’s the early Oscar lock for Best Supporting Actor). So now, after a career made up mostly of small roles on German TV and unnoticed parts in European films, he’s one of the hottest actors in town, and that means good things are coming his way–like the plum role of the bad guy Chudnofsky in “The Green Hornet.” Or so says Deadline Hollywood. (btw, “Chudnofsky” means nothing to me. Please enlighten, Green Hornet scholars.)

Seth Rogen stars in and co-wrote “The Green Hornet” script with colleague Evan Goldberg. Michel Gondry is directing. Nicolas Cage originally was slated to play the villain, but dropped out of the film last week, reportedly because he and the studio couldn’t come to terms on the money. So Cage’s cranky payday snit is Waltz’s good fortune.

Ms. Finke says in her Deadline Hollywood post exactly what I was thinking about Waltz: “How great he’s found success at age 52. Big breaks like this keep actors in Hollywood still hopeful…”

It’s so true. All actors, especially those who toil away in supporting parts that no one really pays attention to–the nurse at the main desk in the hospital drama, the paralegal in the law TV show, the security guard at the big corporation in the business drama–believes that there is that one great part out there waiting just for her or him, and if he or she could just get it, then everyone would see how wonderful he or she can be. And then the offers and awards will come rolling in. Waltz gives us all hope that this can happen. Even if it takes a very, very long time.