15 Seemingly Terrible Horror Castings That Totally Paid Off
8. Green Room - Patrick Stewart
When A24's Green Room cast Sir Patrick Stewart as an evil Neo-Nazi skinhead, there was a collective reaction of "Err... OK then." This was an odd role for him to take on, partly because he's generally such a loveable figure and partly because he hadn't really done anything like this before.
On-screen he's best known for playing wise, loveable authority figures such as Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films or Captain Jean-Luc Piccard in Star Trek, while on-stage he's known for playing Shakespearian roles. Therefore, as brilliant an actor as Stewart absolutely is, this appeared to be a potentially problematic bit of casting... until we saw it, that is.
At this point in his career, now well into his 70s, Sir Patrick had nothing left to prove but he went ahead and did it anyway, reminding us all what an incredible actor he is. Donning a convincing American accent, he excellently portrayed a viscous, psychopathic killer that was like nothing else he'd done on-screen.
This terrific thriller is filled with fine performances and yet Stewart, even though he's not in it as much as some of the others, steals the film. Every single second he's on-screen he commands the viewers' attention, and the way he does this with such an unshowy, naturalistic performance reaffirms the knight of the realm as a master of understated acting.