“I have played less than heroic figures”: the Robert Redford character he called outrageous
Some actors simply aren’t cut out for playing the villain, and Robert Redford is one of them. The actor is a legend, of that there’s no doubt, but breaking bad and serving as an out-and-out antagonist was never regarded as one of his strongest suits.
Of course, the icon has played his fair share of characters who operate in murky and morally grey areas, but being vile and vicious are traits that never factored into his onscreen arsenal. Two of his most famous figures – both of which came opposite longtime friend, Paul Newman – saw him embody criminals, but neither of them is what anyone would call a bad apple.
The Sundance Kid is an outlaw and a robber, but he and Butch also go out of their way to make sure that no innocents end up being harmed or killed when they’re carrying out their heists. Similarly, The Sting‘s Johnny Hooker is a grifter and a con man, but he works with Newman’s Henry Gondorff and the FBI to bring a mob boss to justice.
In fact, arguably the most overtly villainous part of Redford’s career came in a Marvel movie, of all things, when he was revealed to be the nefarious mastermind pulling the strings from the shadows in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. It may not have been intentional, but the actor was a lot more closely aligned with heroism, even if it did bother him on the odd occasion.
Redford even admitted as much, telling Rolling Stone that “a lot of the characters I’ve played have been perceived as shallow heroes” with an air of indignation. “He asked, ‘Why do Redford and Fonda, these big social crusaders, keep giving themselves the roles of the good guys in their films?'” he said of an unnamed critic before clarifying how “I have played less than heroic figures” in the past.
One of them was half of the titular duo in Sidney J Furie’s 1970 dramedy Little Fauss and Big Halsy, where he played Halsy Fox. Alongside Michael J Pollard, they play a professional dirt bike racer and a dimwitted beginner. Halsy has been banned from competing due to his hard-partying ways, so he opts to worm his way back into contention by taking on Fauss’ name, allowing the latter to serve as his mechanic instead.
The film wasn’t a success, but it did boast a title song performed by Johnny Cash. Halsy was a snake oil salesman, a drunk, a womaniser, and a manipulator who saw Fauss as his easy ticket back to the big time, one who even attempts to break up with his pregnant girlfriend and pass her over to his opposite number, who was initially smitten with her before the suave and charming Halsy got there first.
He wasn’t a nice guy, and Redford was the first to admit it: “Fauss, in Little Fauss and Big Halsy, was an outrageous shit.” He certainly was, but singling out one or two characters from a career that spanned 60 years ironically illustrates the point he was rebelling against. That villainy has never really been in his blood.
