Bill Nighy: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

By Dan Woburn /

2. General Friedrich Olbricht - Valkyrie (2008)

As Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg€™s co-conspirator in their plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler (from within his own cabinet, no less), Nighy was gifted the rare opportunity to show a range beyond €˜cold & menacing€™ and €˜humorous detachment€™. He displays a certain fervent nervousness, as a man without the ballsy confidence necessary for taking down a fascist dictator. After their assassination plot fails, Olbricht tragically gains his dignity and confidence... at the very last moment of his life. About to take his turn before a firing squad, von Stauffenberg tells him to look his executioners in the eye so that they remember him. Olbricht does so, in a quietly triumphant moment that€™s authentic and earned thanks to Nighy€™s engaging performance.