20 Things You Didn't Know About Django Unchained
15. Christoph Waltz Initially Turned Down The Role Of Dr King Schultz
Christoph Waltz and Quentin Tarantino had worked together to great success before in the 2009 film Inglourious Basterds. Waltz won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his portrayal of the fictional SS officer Hans Landa, one of the more memorable cinematic villains of the 2000s. So good was Waltz at playing this clever presence of evil that he may have feared typecasting would follow (and he has played many villains, like Blofield in Bond, since).
That was the reason that he initially turned down the role of Schultz in Django. He felt that it was too tailored to his persona and that it would come across as Waltz being Waltz on screen. However, Tarantino refused to take no for an answer and Waltz agreed on the condition that his character was pure and that he never acted in a negative or evil manner. Tarantino responded with a handwritten letter that said: “Of Course, Mein Herr!- Q”. Waltz sent a telegram back saying: “Mein Herr, Of Course!- CW”.
It was a decision that proved to be a good one for Waltz's career as he added another Best Supporting Actor Oscar to his mantelpiece for the Schultz role.