Page 65 - PROTAGONIST 136

This, previous and next page, Benicio del Toro, Michael Cera and Mia Threaple-
ton on the set of The Phoenician Scheme, 2025. ©Courtesy of TPS Productions

It was 1995, and one of the most famous movies of that menacing in a split second, almost imperceptibly. Benicio
time, The Usual Suspects, had just come out. The film may del Toro has put up a career full of rough, intense characters,
pride itself of having revealed to the world a significant dose leaving little space to irony and sarcasm.
of talent: the director Bryan Singer and the protagonist Kevin Just think of his work with the director who, perhaps,
Spacey – now off the radar for reasons that have nothing nurtured him the most: Steven Soderbergh. The latter first
to do with the big screen – of course, but even Christopher recruited him for Traffic, in the role as Mexican policeman
McQuarrie (the filmmaker for the latest episodes of Mission: Javier Rodríguez – winning him an Oscar (as the third Puerto
Impossible), who was the screenwriter. Then there was a tall, Rican ever after José Ferrer and Rita Moreno) – then as
built Puerto Rican actor who, with his painless and rugged the protagonist in the diptych dedicated to Ernesto “Che”
vibe and the sardonic expression of a guy who just got out Guevara, with a literal interpretation of the revolutionary
of bed, made Fenster – a knockabout and smart alec of a leader’s words: “One has to grow hard but without ever losing
criminal – become one of the movie’s centers of gravity. tenderness”.
Those with a trained eye had already noticed the actor, Benicio del Toro was a tough guy even in William
although they still did not know his name. They had seen him, Friedkin’s incredibly underrated movie The Hunted, but lately
perhaps, in an episode of Miami Vice or the music video for the actor – who did not turn down intrusions in sagas like Star
La Isla Bonita by Madonna. Or maybe as a villain in one of the Wars or The Avengers, just to see what it was like – seems
007 movies with Timothy Dalton, License to Kill. to prefer roles highlighting his harmless side. It might have
To make a long story short, The Usual Suspects helped been his encounter with Wes Anderson, who chose him for
Del Toro win an Independent Spirit Award as the Best The French Dispatch and a leading role in The Phoenician
Supporting Actor and become one of the most requested Scheme…
character actors in Hollywood. Not to say he sold his soul, As you wait to see him once again under the guidance
because he performed in films like Basquiat by Julian of Paul Thomas Anderson in One Battle After Another, a
Schnabel and The Funeral by Abel Ferrara. Sure, even in loose adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s Vineland, there is one
the more commercial The Fan by Tony Scott, but beside thing you can do: get a hold of a minor movie called Reptile.
Robert De Niro. Then came Terry Gilliam, who offered him The thriller isn’t memorable in itself, but the way in which
what became another crucial role in his career: the crazy Dr. Benicio del Toro inhabits, suffers, and dominates his role is
Gonzo, partner in (physical and psychedelic) adventures of an impressive example of how he is getting better and more
Hunter S. Thompson (Johnny Depp) in Fear and Loathing in charismatic as his wrinkles and weight increase. The latter
Las Vegas. become the careless and crumpled waves of an irresistible
Over-the-top and borderline characters like the one magnetism. You do not only recognize an actor by how he
in Inherent Vice by Paul Thomas Anderson are part of the pronounces his lines, but by how he moves and uses his body
skillset of a talented and versatile actor, able to turn his and looks on and off stage. Only few artists know how to do
expression from kind and seemingly friendly to dark and this like Benicio del Toro today.

Protagonist Cinema 63