I laughed when I saw the Fall Preview Issue of EW and it had Gene Hackman listed in the Runaway Jury listing.
Isn’t that the third different character he has played in a Grisham movie?
He was in the Firm, the Chamber and now Runaway Jury. Am I the only one who thinks it is odd?
Nah…it’s just like John Tuturro or John Goodman being in lots of Coen Bros movies. Or Harrison Ford being in a lot of Speilberg movies. They’re just suited to the style and subject matter. I think a lot of it is “let’s stick with what we know works.”
He likes money.
No, actually, it’s not the same at all. The three Grisham films in question were made by three different directors for three different studios. The only relationship they have with each other is that they’re all adaptations from the same author (who doesn’t have a screenplay credit on any of the three).
I can just speculate that finding higher profile parts for older men is becoming tougher, and this is an easy way to make some extra green while doing a quick job chewing the scenery (always easy when playing a criminal or attorney) in a potboiler that will get lots of buzz–though that doesn’t mean they’ll do all that well at the box office. Still, he probably made a good-size chunk off the film.
Also, this is the first movie he’s ever been in with Dustin Hoffman, who used to be roommates long before either was famous, so maybe the opportunity to work with an old pal probed irresistable.