I haven't kept a running tally, but nowadays, Hollywood seems to be importing manhood from Down Under to fill tough guy roles for which there used to be a surfeit of American actors. Russell Crowe is practically the default choice for this niche, but more recently there's been Robert Taylor in Longmire and Chris Hemsworth in Thor. Liam Neeson is another example. I'm sure the list is longer.
It wasn't so very long ago that Hollywood had a regular stable of American actors who played the tough guy roles in Westerns, WWII films, gangster films, sports films, film noire, Cold War thrillers, &c. I don't mind the competition, but do contemporary Hollywood casting directors tend to discriminate against American actors who are too macho?
By contrast, there are lots of Canadian actors is American TV dramas–which is not surprising given how Vancouver has become North Hollywood. But they tend to be male fashion model types. It's as if Hollywood looks to Australia for tough guys and Canada for pretty-boys–which is hardly fair to Canada (I'm sure Canada has more than its fair share of tough guys).
I miss those 80s and early 90s action flicks. The other day I watched "Bloodsport". Anyone remember that? That was a great movie that had guys acting like guys, but also cultivating a deep, non-gay friendship.
ReplyDelete"Bloodsport" was a good movie for the time. Another Van Damme movie with almost the exact story is "The Quest". I actually like The Quest better than Bloodsport, but apparently most people who commented on IMDB.com prefer Bloodsport.
DeleteAs a supplement to Steve's post, see the article "Why Aren't Americans Cast As Superheroes Anymore? Not Manly Enough."
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