Ten years ago, if you’d have told me that the kid from 3rd Rock from the Sun might be the next Tarantino star, I’d have been skepitcal. But if you told me that this morning,…well, I’d probably ask why you’re still referring to Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the kid from 3rd Rock from the Sun. He’s been in a ton of films since then. And his possible next venture might very well be the best of all: Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained. Word has it, the 50/50 and Inception star might be joining the Civil War-era Western from the Inglourious Basterds director.
Tarantino movies are capable of inspiring excitement over apparently mediocre casting decisions; the director has derived unforgettable performances from otherwise forgettable actors. So, when we hear that someone we’re all very into lately might sign up for a Tarantino role—especially someone with the quirky versatility of JGL—it produces an almost unhealthy level of glee. If cast, Gordon-Levitt will join Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz and Samuel L. Jackson in the film.
The closest thing Gordon-Levitt has done to anything Tarantino-esque was probably the rhythmic, stylistic 2005 neo-noir Brick, in which he played a lonely teenager investigating a drug ring at his high school. Nonetheless, Tarantino’s twisted world would be a leap for the actor, which makes it all the more exciting.
Again, Tarantino movies are known from provoking unexpected tour-de-force performances from unappreciated actors. After John Travolta had lost a chunk of his credit as a talented actor, his performance as Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction catapulted him to a level of profound respect. Likewise, these films have also brought out sides to actors we never imagined we’d see: who really expected Daryl Hannah to be so chilling, or Eli Roth to be so gripping?
So what new things could we experience with Gordon-Levitt in Django Unchained? His recent film run has hit us with a few pleasant surprises already. If this deal does come into fruition, we can bet that whatever it does end up showing us will be nuts.
Source: Variety
