🧠 Food for Thought - How Certain Casting Decisions Can Spoil Movies & TV Shows.
- John Maurice Otieno
- Sep 3, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 7, 2024
"I knew it!" How many times have you found yourself exclaiming those three famous words in medias res? Ideally, you were watching a murder mystery and successfully managed to beat the detective to the perp. However, this isn't always the case (pun intended).
Sometimes, you can just see a plot twist coming from a mile away. That can be due to a plethora of factors, including, but not limited to genre tropes, ye ol' spoilers and casting choices. You see, certain actors have certain reputations. So, when they turn up on one of your favorite movies or TV shows, you kind of know what to expect.
Spoiled for Choice.
Because some movie stars are associated with playing certain role types and sizes, they can spoil a film simply by being in it. This isn't necessarily a problem as when deployed effectively by filmmakers, a casting decision can subvert expectations and catch audiences off guard. A great example of this is how Drew Barrymore's casting in Scream threw slasher-doting moviegoers off their game. If you're new to the party, the casting of A-List actress Barrymore sold her as the lead of Scream. So, when her character died 12 minutes into the flick, everyone was left shell-shocked! Brilliant!
The flip side, though, is when the subversion is absent and the audience knows what to expect because of their own personal experiences with the actor. I've experienced this more times than I'd like to admit, but for the purposes of this discussion, I'll only highlight my top three most recent such encounters. As always, spoiler alert!
1. Jake Abel in Walker (2021-2024).
I first knew of Jake Abel during my teen years and really enjoyed his performances in some of the best young adult novel film adaptations such as Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, its underrated sequel Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters and the much critically maligned I Am Number Four. What the aforementioned performances have in common, though, is the fact that Abel portrayed heel characters in all three. So, when he shows up in the third season of The CW's modern reimagining of Walker, Texas Ranger as Kevin Golden, a fun, kind and solid guy who's also the mayor's chief of staff, I'm immediately alarmed!
Kevin's seemingly a genuinely good soul who's enamored of the Walker family, but because of my personal experiences with the actor, I couldn't help but be suspicious of the character, carefully scrutinizing every single move he made at every single turn. So much so that when the big reveal of him being the season's big bad - the insidious leader of the terrorist organization Grey Flag - happens, I'm not at all phased. Granted, plenty of Walker fans were just as shocked as the character Trey Barnett when he unearthed Kevin's true colors, but for me, because it was none-other-than Jake Abel, my reaction was simply: "I knew it!"
2. Jai Courtney in Jolt (2021).
I don't know about you, but my only experience with Jai Courtney as a good guy, per se, was in A Good Day to Die Hard. Otherwise, from where I'm sitting, he's always the bad guy. I'm pretty sure there are plenty other films out there in which he's played the protagonist. I just haven't seen them, unfortunately. Enter: Jolt! A fun-packed, fast-paced, action flick and the Australian actor is playing this seemingly meek and naive yet quirky accountant, Justin, whom the lead, Lindy (played by Kate Beckinsale) falls for.
Again, I wasn't buying the act for one second because of the actor and I suppose an early red flag was when he suggested he'd be fine with Lindy plunging a knife into a rude waitress on their first date. Justin is murdered soon after and because of how he good he was to her, a rarity in Lindy's life, she basically spends the entire movie trying to avenge him. That's until, surprise surprise, he turns out to be the villain in a "shocking" plot twist. A rogue CIA agent, he seduced Lindy then faked his own death to have her take out a crime lord. Now, again, I'm sure this was a genuine shock of a reveal for a generous portion of the audience. It's just, my POV of Jai meant my reaction was, and yeah, you guessed it... "I knew it!"
3. Sebastian Stan in The 355 (2022).
With Sebastian Stan, it wasn't so much him being the guy who loves to play negative roles as much as it was the "size" of the actor. Don't get me wrong, I've seen him play the antagonist in a couple roles, namely We Have Always Lived in the Castle and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. However, thanks to his role in the latter, I've always felt like his stock as an actor went through the roof post-MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). So, when he features in the exhilarating spy thriller The 355 as Nick Fowler, a CIA officer and one of the leads' love interest who dies very early on in the film, I'm skeptical!
Because of his prestige, I just found it hard to believe the actor would play such a tiny part and it's this kind of skepticism that held me in somewhat good stead as I undertook the role of film detective. In the film, Nick's conveniently murdered in a street surveillance blind spot and we never see his body. So, when he shows up as the movie edges towards its climax, alive and kicking, I am well and truly dumbfounded (not)! Make no mistake, it was a well-crafted moment and the character was well-written. It's just that Stan playing the role meant that, for me, this was yet another "I knew it!" moment.
The Nutshell.
So, in a nutshell, certain casting decisions can profoundly influence how the audience consumes a flick, especially because actors with certain reputations can ruin a potential surprise in a narrative just by being in the film. A special shout out goes to Mike Colter in The Union (2024). Because of his casting in the movie, my brother and I were able to figure out who the villain of the story was in the opening scene, something that ought to have been a third-act plot twist.
Do you have any such experiences with actors? How did their casting in a role manage to spoil the film for you? Food for thought 🧠
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