Keith Girard
Woody Harrelson is the Zelig of dystopian movies. He appears in the new Star Wars movie ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ (Screen Cap)
A new “Solo: A Star Wars Story” trailer provides a glimpse of the characters in the latest one-off from the “Star Wars” series, but the really big question is how the hell did Woody Harrelson get in this movie?
Harrelson, 56, has an uncanny knack of turning up in an amazing number of dystopian science-fiction movies.
In “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” He plays Tobias Beckett, an irascible, anti-establishment outlaw/rebel. Where have we seen that before?
His first foray into dystopianism came in 2007’s “No Country for Old Men,” a neo-noir western thriller written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen.
He plays a neer-do-well who is killed in the movie, displaying the character traits that would develop into his dystopian anti-hero.
Harrelson firmly established himself in the genre in 2009’s “Zombieland,” a comedy horror film directed by Ruben Fleischer. Harrelson starred with Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin as survivors of a zombie apocalypse.
The same year, he popped up in the forgettable “2012,” a science fiction disaster film about solar rays heating the earth’s core (really!). He co-starred with John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt, Thandie Newton and Danny Glover.
He cemented his title as the king of dystopia in the 2012 film “The Hunger Games.” The blockbuster movie series was about a post-nuclear apocalypse society. Kids are forced to fight to the death in annual games for the amusement of adults, ultimately leading to a rebellion.
Oddly, Harrelson’s character-type was almost identical to his “Zombieland” role. He played Haymitch Abernathy, an irascible, crazed, anti-establishment rebel.
After four blockbuster Hunger Games films, you’d think Hollywood would be looking for a fresh face. But no…
Harrelson popped up as the crazed, irascible character, The Colonel, in the 2017 film “War for the Planet of the Apes.”
Beside appearing in the latest Star Wars film, Harrelson now even has his own Marvel superhero chracter. He’ll play Carnage, aka, Cletus Kasady, a super-villain in the upcoming movie “Venom,” featuring Tom Hardy as Venom, aka Eddie Brock.
It’s like no future calamity film will be complete without him. Check out the trailer below, let us know your thoughts and be sure to follow IM on Twitter for the latest film and television news.