Vincent Cassel is one of the most well-regarded French actors on the planet. He’s won numerous awards for his acting over the past few decades, starring in such films as “La Haine,” “Black Swan,” and “Mesrine.” He’s also been someone that has shown up in star-studded blockbusters, with appearances in the ‘Ocean’s’ franchise, as well as “Jason Bourne” and recently, “Westworld.” But Cassel does draw the line at superhero films.
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Speaking to Inverse, Cassel discussed the recently completed Season 3 of “Westworld,” but the actor also explained why he’s turned down superhero film roles in the past and why he’ll likely continue to do so in the future.
“Honestly, these are not movie movies I watch anymore,” he explained. “When they came up with the technology and the fact that suddenly Iron Man or Spider-Man could look real and not tacky in the special effects, I was interested. Then, it became normal.”
He continued, “I was a big fan of the comics at the time when I was a kid. Nowadays, I think these are movies for kids, really. And even though I still have a part of me who’s a kid, I would say no. I wouldn’t watch it.”
Though his comments sound pretty definitive, Cassel isn’t ready to totally rule out a superhero film. But it would have to be something truly special, and he’s really only interested in a villain role.
“Maybe if you had a great villain and it’s done with by somebody who’s really intelligent and talented enough to give it a twist so it doesn’t look like a movie for kids, then maybe I would do it,” Cassel added. “But otherwise, no. The few approaches that I had, I felt like it would have been a long time commitment for something that I wouldn’t even watch to the end.”
The actor doesn’t go into which films were offered to him in the past, but clearly they were roles that didn’t meet his standards. Of course, with Academy Award-winning actors regularly signing up for superhero films nowadays, you have to wonder if Cassel will feel the desire to do so eventually. That Marvel money is too good to pass up, sometimes, right?