Sometimes the most unsuspecting criminal may be the attractive man you can't take your eyes off of. Ryan Phillippe plays a rich pretty boy by the name of Louis Roulet who has a whole lot of unattractive layers underneath in Brad Furman's The Lincoln Lawyer. He's one of the key players of the entire story, intertwining Mick Haller's (Matthew McConaughey) legal and personal life together when things start going wrong.
You may be wondering whether or not the character Louis immediately fell in Phillippe's lap when he showed interest in taking on the project. As a matter of fact, he had to kind of fight for the role, having to go in and audition for director Brad Furman and company. "Brad (Furman) told me that 200 guys auditioned for this part and I was one of them," revealed Phillippe at the LA press day for the Lionsgate Films release. "I had to go in and that doesn't bother me, it makes perfect sense." The big factor having to do with Phillippe not only going through the entire audition process wasn't just because of his budding experience being a director (he's transitioning to work behind the camera), but just how juicy the role was to him. "The scripts I've been reading for the last couple of years have been thin, one-dimensional and uninspiring. So it was great to read something I can actually sink my teeth into."
Playing a villain has always been referred to as the "fun role," but why is it always so? Taking on the role of a hero is equally as fun, but there's always an added ingredient to the villain formula that fascinates more people. "I have often played the protagonist or the hero of the movie and there's so many rules inherent to that role. The audience needs to stay with you, needs to identify with you and like you. When you play the bad guy, those rules go out the window. There's so much freedom there."
And there must have been a lot of great times ensuing on set between himself and Matthew McConaughey. McConaughey mentioned that the two actors never really rehearsed prior to shooting their scenes in front of the camera. "We didn't rehearse very much intentionally because we wanted to be fresh and would be able to catch each other off-guard. I think we had pretty good dude chemistry together," said Phillippe.
And speaking of 'dude' chemistry, the other person Phillippe meshed well with was none other than the director. Not only were they able to work fine together because of their age and own backgrounds, but because of his own viewpoint on The Lincoln Lawyer. "The greatest thing about Brad (Furman) is that, in reference to this movie, in the hands of an older, more seasoned director it could have fallen into more predictable territory. I think the fact that it was so important for him to emphasize the hip hop aspect of it and to make sure that he shook it up, there was an edge, I think, that comes from the fact that he's young and that this is still relatively new to him."
"He was determined for this not to be boring. There were days on the set where, if he were shooting something and he felt like it was standard he'd say, 'Ah! This is the most boring scene I've ever seen in my life!' And this is the director so you try to find a way to shake it up and I love that candor and his passion."
* * * * * *
The Lincoln Lawyer hits theaters on March 18, 2011.
