With Bennett Miller‘s “Foxcatcher” entering the Oscar fray it’s time for Sony Pictures Classics to start hustling the picture, but it seems that not everyone in their starry cast — which includes Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo and Sienna Miller — will be immediately recognizable. Yes, that’s Steve Carell, and he’s got a new prosthetic nose.
“We just had our first test [screening], and not everybody recognized Steve. He is aged , and his face is changed, and his physicality changed,” Miller told EW. “If I say I’m going to make a movie about a guy who’s a schizophrenic murderer, there are probably a dozen actors who would immediately appear on anybody’s casting list. And Steve would not be on any of those lists. And that’s a good thing. Because it’s unexpected…”
In case you’re still not up to speed, Carell is playing John du Pont, in the bizarre true story of a multimillionaire and paranoid schizophrenic who built a wrestling training facility, Team Foxcatcher, on his 800-acre Pennsylvania estate. In 1996, he shockingly murdered Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler David Schultz (Ruffalo), a longtime friend, who du Pont believed was part of an international conspiracy to kill him. Again, it sounds like a helluva tale and we’re eager to see this one.
Meanwhile, from killers to heroes…here’s a new look at Idris Elba in some pretty unintentionally funny old age makeup in “Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom.” Hopefully this is just one errant shot, and that everything works once you’re watching the film. It sort of reminds us a bit of Anthony Hopkins last year in “Hitchcock,” who looked a bit jarring in stills, but worked just fine in the movie (even if it was disappointing).
“Foxcatcher” lands on December 20th, with ‘Mandela’ opening on November 29th. Updated: “Foxcatcher” will make its world premiere at the AFI Fest in November.
