Viggo Mortensen reveals his problem with franchise cinema: “They’re not usually that good”
The filmography of Viggo Mortensen is endlessly broad, incorporating everything from gritty crime thrillers like Carlito’s Way to comedy-dramas in Captain Fantastic. The New Yorker has been a stalwart of the film industry for decades, but many people were first exposed to his work through his role as Aragorn in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Mortensen handled the role expertly and quickly became a fan favourite within the franchise. Inevitably, therefore, when the trilogy came to a close in 2003, the actor began to be offered many more roles in blockbuster franchises. If you look at Mortensen’s filmography, however, his career following The Lord of the Rings is just as broad and wide-reaching as it was prior to taking on the role of Aragorn.
The actor clearly has a love for independent cinema, as represented by his many collaborations with legendary director David Cronenberg. It seems, then, that the idea of a big-budget fantasy franchise does not particularly align with the interests of Mortensen. Confirming this, the actor recently revealed that he is not too keen to act in a franchise ever again.
Discussing his career and process for choosing projects in a recent interview with Vanity Fair, the Aragorn actor shared, “I don’t really look for or avoid any kind of genre or any size budget. I just look for interesting stories.” That ethos is certainly reflected within Mortensen’s career.
Continuing, the actor said, “It doesn’t matter to me what the genre is or what the budget is or who’s making them. I would never do a movie just because so-and-so is directing it. It has to be about the story. And if I think I’m right for the character, that always comes first.”
“That goes for franchises,” Mortensen then added, continuing, “If somebody came to me with X movie, the third part or the ninth part, and I thought it was a great character and I wanted to play that character and I thought I had something to contribute, I’d do it. I’m not against it.”
Conversely, the New York actor suggested that many franchises are poorly written cash-grabs, which he has no interest in being a part of. “They’re not usually that good,” he said, “I mean, to me, they’re not usually that well-written. They’re kind of predictable. I mean, of course, there’s always the issue of if I run out of money.”
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