Paul Walker: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

2. Tim Kearney €“ The Death And Life Of Bobby Z (2007)

Of course, his action roles were his bread and butter, but that doesn't mean any two parts were the same. Sometimes Walker gave some generic blockbuster hero performances, but all actors have their off days. Heck, Morgan Freeman has more than most. And he's practically god. Walker, meanwhile, was always looking for ways to break out of that restrictive mould. It's just that he needed directors with the same vision. He found one in John Herzfeld, who had previously helmed a handful of thrillers and controversial documentaries, who had himself happened upon some dynamite source material: The Death And Life Of Bobby Z, a novel by master American crime writer Don Wislow. And besides Walker, he amassed a great cast to bring it to life. Jason Lewis played the titular drug dealer with a cartel price on his head, Laurence Fishburne was the federal agent tasked with getting him safely across the border from Mexico, whilst Walker is clueless doppelgänger Tim Kearney, whom Fisburne's agent replaces Bobby Z with in order to get back a colleague the cartel took hostage. It's a complicated plot and Walker mainly plays a bit of a doofus, but he does it with amiable charm and charisma, to the point that you end up rooting for him against all else.