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As Eddie Izzard this week is confirmed in his biggest
role to date, comedylounge dares to ask the question:
Who told him he could be serious?
Eddie Izzard has been cast in the role of Charlie
Chaplin for the new Peter Bogdanovich film 'The Cat's
Meow'. Starring alongside Kirsten Dunst , the film is
to begin shooting later this month in Germany and
Greece. The drama, which is set to cost up to £25
million, is a massive step forward for Izzard's film
career. But will it cost him his comedy career?
In the last few years, many comedians have tried to
make the leap from comic to straight acting, with some
obvious success stories - Robbie Coltrane in Cracker
being the prime example. From guest appearances in
the Comic Strip plays, playing anything from heavy man
to village mistress, Coltrane wasn't everyone's idea
of the leading man. However, his portrayal of
chain-smoking, alcoholic psychologist Fitz in ITV's
Cracker series made the series the immense success
that it was. And his portrayal was made all the more
poignant to the media-literate audience by the fact
that Coltrane was no longer playing it for laughs.
It is difficult for comedians to get people to take
them seriously. Producers, facing more and more
competition every day from satellite and digital
networks as well as the terrestrial channels, and the
pressure to draw in the audience can lead to some
drastic decisions. Many critics saw 'stunt casting'
as the only explanation for the ridiculous decision to
allow Ardal O'Hanlon take the leading role in 1999's
Big Bad World.
Taking Ardal O'Hanlon seriously as a straight actor
was difficult enough, but forcing the audience to
watch Father Dougal have sex proved too much for some
viewers. The programme, although not completely
slated, did not do wonders for O'Hanlon's career,
already dented by the horror that was 'My Hero'.
O'Hanlon is not the first comedian trying to make the
switch, and he will definitely not be the last. From
Lenny Henry to Alan Davies, Billy Connolly to Robin
Williams, comedians seem only too willing to take the
leap into serious acting. But with the sheer weight
of numbers heading in that direction, comedians are
now appearing in this new guise almost every night on
our television screens. As they try to induce tears
of the audience - not of laughter, but rather with
ever more dramatic roles, it does beg the question:
does this prove greater versatility on the part of the
comedians, or shamefully commercial casting on the
part of the producers?
Undoubtedly, adding known names to an unknown drama
will help to draw in a younger audience that would
otherwise not have tuned in. Coltrane's success acted
as a point of reference that producers could touch on
when selling the story. Lenny Henry has since
successfully made the leap - after some appallingly
bad decisions - with 'Hope And Glory', the BBC drama
in which he plays the headmaster of a troubled
comprehensive. And Alan Davies' success in Jonathon
Creek has lead to his landing the main part in the
comedy drama 'A Many Splintered Thing'. This last
career decision back-fired somewhat, however, as the
series has been dropped by the BBC due to
disappointing ratings. It seems that the public is
willing to take the comedian casting only to a certain
point - nerdy / cute / psychotic is acceptable, but to
see a comedian playing the romantic leading man still
seems a step too far.
Is the drive to be taken seriously a need shared by
many comedians? It seems so, given that in the last
five years, many comedians have taken to expressing
their darker sides in print form. Sean Hughes has
written a serious novel, as has Ardal O'Hanlon. Along
with Stephen Fry, Rob Newman and David Baddiel. As
well as Hugh Laurie, Michael Palin and (to a lesser
extent) Eric Idle. Along with that, the list of
performers appearing on stage in ART in the last two
years has read like a veritable who's who of comedy -
at the moment, Sean Hughes and Alastair McGowan appear
where Jack Dee and Frank Skinner have gone before.
And the comedy re-casting doesn't end there. The soap
couple of the moment - Frank and Peggy Butcher - are
both played by well-known comedy actors. Mike Reid's
past life as a bluer than Davidson stand up has only
added to his credibility on screen, and when Peggy
Butcher was struck down with breast cancer, the
connection to Barbara Windsor's Carry-On roles did not
go uncommented on.
Comedy, to rehash the well-known catchphrase, is a
very serious business. And with this current trend
looking set to continue indefinitely, it seems to be
set to become even more solemn.