The iconic actor Mark E. Smith wanted to portray him in a biopic
The Fall’s Mark E. Smith has never been one to shy away from speaking his mind. One of the greatest pioneers of the post-punk era, Smith’s witty approach to both art and life influenced the landscape of music in many ways. A bonafide cultural icon, Smith’s defiant individuality played a major part in defining his immortal persona.
While Smith’s biting comments about the music industry are fairly well-known among fans, he was also a compelling film critic. During his final years, Smith devoted a lot of time to films and old science fiction journals as he was a hardcore sci-fi fan. In particular, Smith enjoyed the intelligent literary explorations of Philip K. Dick.
While many Philip K. Dick fans enjoy the film adaptations based on his novels as well, Smith had a burning hatred for the most famous Dick adaptation of all time. Ridley Scott’s 1982 neo-noir film Blade Runner is considered to be among the genre’s best offerings by many, but Smith called it the “most obscene film ever made”.
He famously declared that Total Recall was the only Philip K. Dick adaptation he liked. Due to the controversial nature of his opinions, journalists often asked him about various subjects to elicit attention-grabbing comments. In a 2012 conversation with The Guardian, the same thing happened when the interviewer asked Smith about music biopics.
When it was pointed out to Smith that the actor who portrayed a younger version of him in 24 Hour Party People also played the role of Ian Curtis in a different project, Smith attacked the film industry for their treatment of biopics. He cited the 2005 Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line as an example of Hollywood’s distorted approach.
The film starred Joaquin Phoenix as the iconic singer, and he received multiple accolades for his performance. However, he failed to impress Smith, who said: “It’s those film people, like that bloke who played Johnny Cash. It was fucking ridiculous, wasn’t it? They may as well have got the bloke who plays Batman.”
Smith had also given some thought to the idea of a biopic about him which is why he didn’t hesitate when the interviewer asked him about his preference for the actor who would play Mark E. Smith in a biopic. Smith responded: “That’s the tragedy of it, that would be good, wouldn’t it? Get in the guy out of Fight Club. He’d make a great me.”
