The big casting news of the day according to the trades (via Yahoo!) seems to be that Jack Black will star opposite Naomi Watts in Peter Jackson’s new version of the ape epic King Kong. Black will play the character who wants to capture Kong and exhibit him in New York.
At first glance, I thought to myself: Black as a non-ironic or humorous villain? Is he right for a fairly straight-forward role not meant for laughs? Granted, I don’t know how Jackson intends to to make this picture, but I don’t believe he’s planning to have a hyperactive slapstick clown as the main antagonist.
And then I realized I was being stupid. (A fairly common occurrence.) Although Black has achieved his fame through his “band” Tenacious D and comic roles in films like High Fidelity and The School of Rock, Black is actually a much more versatile actor than he’s been given an opportunity to show.
I started in the theatre department at UCLA back in 1988. (Obviously, I was a genius to be starting there at the young age of 5!) My first year there, Black was also a student. I never socialized with him, and I’m not sure if we ever actually met; by the end of my first year, I’m pretty sure he had left school (but don’t take my word for that), and I’m certain he wouldn’t know who I am or remember me from back then. But I’ve always remembered that Black was one of the most talented actors I had ever seen. In fact, several people who attended UCLA theatre at the same time as I have gone on to bigger and better things and achieved some degree of notoriety, or at the very least are making their livings as actors, but with only a couple exceptions, if I saw them actually perform at UCLA, I don’t remember. I know I only saw Black in a couple things, but they weren’t comedies, and he was always phenomenal. I’m glad the visionary Jackson will give the world a chance to see that Black can play more than just the ADHD-afflicted characters we’ve come to know and love.
Out of Focus 