Austin360 blogs > Out & About > Archives > 2008 > September > 23 > Entry
Ben McKenzie, Rowan Joseph at Jo’s, Part 3
For his part, Joseph had never seen the “O.C.” One thing that clinched McKenzie for the “Johnny Got His Gun” role was a candid Web image.
“I saw a picture of Ben walking down the street of LA — whistling. Nobody whistles. Not in LA,” Joseph says. “I said ‘That’s the one.’ He has to look like he stepped off the battlefield in World War I. He has to be an Everyman. He has to be a boy at the beginning and a man at the end.”
After just a few screenings, he’s been delighted by the reaction of McKenzie fans to the material, composed almost entirely of words and very little cinematic visualization.
“It’s been a long time since people listened in movies,” Joseph said. “Audiences, younger audiences, are having that experience for the first time. It’s a bench, a chair and Ben.”
Joseph received two calls after the first screening in Washington D.C., one from Mark Cuban’s group, asking what cities they’d like to play, the other from the Pentagon asking if he wanted a tour.
“Ninety-eight percent of films don’t get distribution,” Joseph says. “How did we get here? This is surreal. Thank god for Dalton Trumbo and Ben.”
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By Gary
September 23, 2008 11:47 PM | Link to this
Ugh ... he is a beautiful, beautiful man. I am jealous, Michael. Very, very jealous.