Don’t get me wrong, Adrien Brody is a great actor, and his two Oscar wins, for “The Pianist” and “The Brutalist,” were well-deserved, but this man has had his fair share of ups and downs throughout his three decades of acting.
They say winning an Oscar helps boost an actor’s career, but after winning for “The Pianist” in 2003, Brody went on to star in an innumerable amount of dubious films, including “Predators,” “The Experiment,” “Back to 1942,” “American Heist,” “September of Shiraz,” “Ghosted,” “Fool’s Paradise,” and “Air Strike.”
In fact, Brody’s post-Oscar reputation was only partially salvaged due to his fruitful partnership with Wes Anderson, which has so far amounted to five films. He wasn’t really the lead in any one of them, but those films also represented his most acclaimed work since “The Pianist.” That is, until “The Brutalist” showed up at his doorstep.
So, will winning his second Oscar pave the way for a more satisfying set of roles? During an on-stage conversation at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival, Brody revealed that he has yet to accept a new role in the wake of his Best Actor Oscar win last March. He’s being very picky.
“I’ve not taken a film since The Brutalist. It’s not because I have not had interesting opportunities, but it didn’t feel quite right,” he said. “I love to work and I love to collaborate with people, and I love to be immersed. I like to be creating. I like the problem solving. I thrive on that level of immersion.”
Brody’s next project was supposed to be S. Craig Zahler’s “The Bookie and the Bruiser,” which was set to go into production in April 2025. However, those plans got scrapped, Brody pulled out, replaced by Theo James (“The Monkey”).
My best guess is that Brody dropped out because he didn’t want that film to be his first post-Oscar project—just a hunch. He was also reportedly in talks to star in Damien Chazelle’s “Evel Knievel on Tour,” but when Leonardo DiCaprio dropped out, that project was scrapped as well.
So, “The Brutalist” has effectively revitalized Brody’s career, with more opportunities likely on the horizon—and as we wait to see what he chooses for his post-Oscar return, teaming up with an A-list director would be the smartest move.
Brady Corbet's “The Origin of the World,” his X-Rated epic about "Northern California’s economy" in the 1970s epic, has now started production in South Africa under the working title “SALT FLATS.”