The Iconic Roles Of One Of Hollywood's Greatest Character Actors

With Adrien Brody's award-winning turn in The Brutalist (2024), telling the tale of a Jewish immigrant to the United States who struggles to fit in in a new country, we thought we'd explore some of Brody's best and worst works throughout his decades-long career.

The Village

Brody starred in The Village (2004), where he sensitively played a developmentally disabled person, Noah Percy, who falls in love with a local village girl named Ivy. But when he learns that she's already engaged to another man—Lucius Hunt—Percy stabs Lucius in a fit of rage, which sends the entire village into turmoil. Now a cult classic, the movie received mixed reviews from critics upon its release.

Touchstone, The Village (2004)

Blonde

One of Brody's out-of-character roles was in Blonde (2022), where he played Arthur Miller, the playwright who would become Marilyn Monroe's third husband. Brody approached the role from the perspective of one who always loved Monroe more for her intellect than her looks. Starring alongside Ana de Armas, Blonde (2022) is one of his best recent films.

Plan B Entertainment, Blonde (2022)

Summer Of Sam

We go back to the late 1990s with Summer of Sam (1999), where Brody plays a young punk rocker with spiky hair and a fake British accent. Although the film details the murderous spree of David Berkowitz, Brody's relatively small part in Summer of Sam would see him take on a whole new role—and play it well.

Touchstone, Summer of Sam (1999)

The French Dispatch

Written and directed by Wes Andersen, The French Dispatch (2021) stars Brody alongside Benicio Del Toro. The former portrayed Julien Cadazio, an art dealer serving time in prison for tax evasion, where he meets Moses Rosenthaler, a prisoner suffering from mental illness, who's a talented artist. Brody's character wants to purchase a work from Rosenthaler—unfortunately, it's a mural, painted onto the prison wall.

American Empirical Pictures, The French Dispatch (2021)

Hollywoodland

Starring alongside Ben Affleck for this one, Brody plays a private eye named Louis Simo, who is skeptical of the original ruling that George Reeves had taken his own life. His role unveils that, not unlike the death he's investigating, his own personal life is equally in shambles. 

Miramax, Hollywoodland (2006)

Liberty Heights

Starring in the semi-autobiographical movie Liberty Heights (1999), Brody assumes the role of Van, a son of a prominent Jewish family in 1954 America who have to adjust to the world around them. Walking the tightrope between family and love, Brody's character nails the role perfectly. 

Baltimore Pictures, Liberty Heights (1999)

The Darjeeling Limited

A second collaboration with Wes Andersen came in 2007, when Brody joined Jason Schwartzman and Owen Wilson aboard The Darjeeling Limited (2007). It's a tale of three estranged brothers undertaking a journey across India to visit their mother, who's become a nun in a Himalayan convent. Struggling with their relationship with each other and their mother, Brody's younger side is displayed in this comedy

Fox Searchlight Pictures, The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

King Kong

Starring in Peter Jackson's remake of the 1933 classic, Brody plays the hero, Jack Driscoll—who argues for saving Kong, alongside love interest Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts). Brody demonstrates his versatility in this role with a flair for romance, action, and adopting the dry sense of humor found commonly in Jack Driscoll's character from the 1933 classic.

Universal, King Kong (2005)

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Starring alongside Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton, Saoirse Ronan, Edward Norton, and Willem Dafoe, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) sees Brody play the role of a strangely-named person: Dmitri Desgoffe-und-Taxis, a greed-filled son of a widowed noblewoman. Seeking to either pay out or dispense with anyone who stands in the way of his mother's fortune, Brody's personification of evil is expert-level—along with an evil mustache to twirl. 

Fox Searchlight Pictures, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Midnight In Paris

One of Woody Allen's greatest comedies might be this one. Midnight In Paris (2011) sees Adrien Brody star as Salvador Dali, the eccentric 20th-century Spanish artist. Landing every joke, Brody's masterful depiction of Dali gives us further insight into just how versatile an actor he is.

Mediapro, Midnight in Paris (2011)

Septembers Of Shiraz

Another of Brody's great movies is this compelling drama centred around the Iranian Revolution of 1979. Brody again plays a Jewish character, Isaac Amin, a gemologist who's suddenly arrested in Tehran by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in the days following the Revolution. Detailing the brutal treatment of Jews in Iran in the aftermath of the revolution and Amin's subsequent escape, Septembers of Shiraz (2015) is one of Brody's most compelling character portrayals.

Eclectic Pictures, Septembers of Shiraz (2015)

The Pianist

Easily one of Brody's best portrayals is of Władysław Szpilman in The Pianist (2002). Starring as Jewish pianist Szpilman, Brody expertly captures the panic, terror, and trials of the Jewish pianist working in the Warsaw Ghetto at the start of the Second World War. His performance in The Pianist would net Brody his first Academy Award for Best Actor.

R.P. Productions, The Pianist (2002)

The Brutalist

His most recent character masterpiece is The Brutalist (2024). Easily one of his best films, the movie depicts the struggles of László Tóth, an architect and Jewish immigrant to the United States, who escapes the horrors of Hungary during the Second World War to find a new life. László's character struggles with chasing the American dream, without compromising on his own values. Brody's expert portrayal, once again of an immigrant escaping hell, brought him his second Oscar for Best Actor.

Brookstreet Pictures, The Brutalist (2024)

Adrien Brody's Brutal Body Transformation For A Role

In order to play the role of Władysław Szpilman, a Jewish man during WWII, Adrien Brody had to do some extreme things to his body. He lost 30 pounds, dropping his body weight to 130 pounds and developed an eating disorder following the role. He refuses to watch the movie to this day, stating it is simply too painful.

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R.P. Productions, The Pianist (2002)

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