# What is it with Christopher Walken? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 6, 2003, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483 "2003-03-06T14:13:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/61 "2003-03-07T22:00:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ender\_Will \* > Walken is popular because every film he’s in (at least the ones I’ve seen) will have him deliver at least one line which is absolutely perfect. > _Suicide Kings_ “Ira, you are the man” > _Poolhall Junkies_ “I’m a millionaire” > _SNL_ “The only prescription is more cowbell” > _Catch Me if You Can_ “He got a fake ID and joined the Marines” > and I am drawing a blank on others, off the top of my head. \*\* And don’t forget: Joe Dirt (Clem/Ethan B Frome) - “You got it all wrong to talk to him like that…do it again, and I’ll stick a soldering iron in you eye!” He was also great in Waynes World II and Antz > [@](#): > > Walloon > Willem Dafoe, not Christopher Walken, played Max Schreck in Shadow of the Vampire (2000). Ah but Walken did play a Max Schreck in Batman Returns! ---
**Author:** ![dinahmoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8797f3/32.png) [@dinahmoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dinahmoe)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2003, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/62 "2003-03-07T23:02:22Z")
Good lord but I love this man. One of the funniest things I ever saw was the SNL “Census” skit with Walken and Tim Meadows. “I’m really bad at guesstimating!” My life’s ambition is to dance a tango with Christopher Walken:) ---
**Author:** ![GoldenGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8edcca/32.png) [@GoldenGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoldenGael)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/63 "2003-03-08T00:13:19Z")
Incidentally, as I understand it, the script for a typical SNL show changes right up to the opening monologue and beyond, so there is almost no point to learning the lines. That said, the stage manager _could_ do a better job of positioning the cue cards so that the cast’s reading them directly is not so obvious. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/64 "2003-03-08T00:44:40Z")
I like Walken because of his willingness to be the “creepy” guy. I think he’s creepy in a sexy way. ---
**Author:** ![ReBusEniGma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@ReBusEniGma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReBusEniGma)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/65 "2003-03-08T20:57:45Z")
Well, hats off to him for his marital longevity, especially in Hollywood. That’s impressive. For the life of me, I can’t remember what flick he was in where he played …um… the devil was it? I can remember him sitting on a rock beside the heroine trying to ‘woo’ her… pretty cool to my recollection… ---
**Author:** ![butter\_pie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aca169/32.png) [@butter\_pie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/butter_pie)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/66 "2003-03-08T21:36:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cat Fight \* > \*\*What is with him? Well, he’s totally sexy and hot. Right? Right guys? \*\* I think so. ---
**Author:** ![Hepcat421](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/34f0e0/32.png) [@Hepcat421](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hepcat421)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/67 "2003-03-08T22:48:59Z")
I can not believe that no one mentioned his roles in The Prophecy series. Creepy good stuff. I liked the SNL skit where he played a spoof of the dead zone. He was a psychic who would touch you and then see visions of totally trivial things. [Paraphrased] “Later you are going to have ice cream… you will eat it too fast… you will get an ice cream headache… it will hurt… reeaal bad.” ---
**Author:** ![raizok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4491bb/32.png) [@raizok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raizok)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2003, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/68 "2003-03-08T22:54:01Z")
“See that?” _punches Dennis Hopper in the face_ “Smarts doesn’t it? Blood rushes into your brain, your eyes fill up with water…” -True Romance That was easily the coolest moment (for me anyways) in Walken’s career. ---
**Author:** ![ReBusEniGma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@ReBusEniGma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReBusEniGma)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2003, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/69 "2003-03-09T00:43:39Z")
> [@](#): > > I can not believe that no one mentioned his roles in The Prophecy series. Creepy good stuff. That’s it! That’s the flick I was referring to, Prophecy, and Prophecy II. Thanks **Hepcat421** ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/70 "2003-03-10T10:55:07Z")
Walken was on the Charlie Rose show the other night. He’s a really nice guy, and completely normal in real life. He’s good at playing “creepy” (witness this thread) so he gets cast that way a lot. That’s not all he’s about though. My favorite creepy role of his is as Brad Whitewood Sr. in **At Close Range** (with Sean Penn as his son, talk about an intense matchup!). My favorite non-creepy role is **Who Am I This Time?**. It’s nice to see that both those movies have been mentioned already in this thread! ---
**Author:** ![darksight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@darksight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/darksight)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/71 "2003-03-10T12:49:21Z")
That creepyness is about 50% of what he does so well. His sceen in pulp fiction is a spot on steal the show, and the sceen only last about 2 mins. Amazing. Have to say Walken is the man ~ ---
**Author:** ![TGWATY](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5e925/32.png) [@TGWATY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TGWATY)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/72 "2003-03-11T15:25:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GargoyleWB \* > **Walken was the producer who continuously kept insisting that there be “more cow bell” in the song.** I remember it now. I saw that! Thank you, thank you! ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/73 "2003-03-11T17:19:53Z")
Congrats to CW for picking up the SAG award for Best Supporting Actor. Kinda doubt he’ll win the Oscar (he’s got one already), but he was obviously surprised and a little speechless by the honor. ---
**Author:** ![Bomzaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@Bomzaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bomzaway)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/74 "2003-03-11T18:51:33Z")
Am I the only one that saw **Dogs of War**? There’s a great scene where Walken is interrogating a guy and isn’t getting any answers. So he takes a broken piece of glass, shoves it past the guys lips, and punches him in the mouth. Walken is great. ---
**Author:** ![Bomzaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@Bomzaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bomzaway)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/75 "2003-03-11T18:54:25Z")
Oh, and his performance in the move **Blast from the past** was outstanding. A huge geek, stuck in the 50’s, and more than a little nuts? Perfect Walken. ---
**Author:** ![On\_To\_Barstow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9fc29f/32.png) [@On\_To\_Barstow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/On_To_Barstow)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483/76 "2003-03-11T19:25:14Z")
He’s fantastic. His face is so unique, his timing unmatched, and a distinct recognizable voice. He has unfortunately been type cast as the crazy, creepy guy, but there is talent and good range in him (see Catch Me If You Can) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-it-with-christopher-walken/159483.md?page=3)