Eddie Redmayne jokes that his Razzie-winning performance in Jupiter Ascending “lives on in meme history”
Who else can say they create memes... as well as destroy them!
Aux News Eddie Redmayne
There are plenty of pieces to the Wachowskis’ 2015 sci-fi film Jupiter Ascending that stand out in its first viewing, like dog-human hybrid Channing Tatum or Mila Kunis’ character being of interstellar bee royalty. Yet, none of those things can beat the absolutely unhinged performance of Eddie Redmayne as Balem Abrasax, the film’s over-the-top baddie whose obsession over a youth serum rivals that of TikTok’s skincare sector.
While critics at the time weren’t the film’s biggest fans, the cheesy space opera has grown into a sort-of cult classic online, specifically for the level of camp provided by Redmayne’s caped villain (i.e. every time he seemingly screeches out-of-nowhere). In a recent interview with IndieWire, the Fantastic Beasts star reflected on his croaky tyrant and the performance that would make him a Razzie Award winner.
“It lives on in meme history,” joked the Oscar winner. “That world was so beyond my level of imagination. I just wanted to go and swim in [the Wachowskis’] imaginations. I had sort of no idea what I was doing, I didn’t know anything about the budget, but I had a really enjoyable time making it.”
He added: “But I also wasn’t in it that much, and I just remember that the character I was playing was incredibly vain and was squishing up humans in order to make them into serum to live longer, so the thing what was most important was that I had a six-pack and a spray tan. So there was a lot of sit-ups involved and me clenching my attempt at abs whilst speaking in a strange voice.”
Though the hammy role might not be everyone’s favorite, Redmayne revealed in a 2018 GQ interview that it had become some people’s preferred acting endeavor of his. “People seem to enjoy what I do, or loathe what I do…and [for] those people that loathe what I do, Jupiter Ascending tends to be their favorite of my performances,” said the actor through a fit of laughter.
15 Comments
Jupiter Ascending is a fantastic movie to watch… when you’re high.
High on RegenX!
Jupiter Ascending is a fantastic movie to watch… when you’re high.Ahh, so that was my problem.
It probably helped to be high while writing it, too.
It’s ridiculous and often stupid but it’s not boring and there’s always something cool or odd to look at. I’d rather watch a movie like that instead of some formulaic biopic or Oscar bait .
I can confidently report that it is not.
I can confidently report that you are wrong.
I actually do love him in this movie, and I love this movie in general. It’s completely ridiculous, but it’s a visual feast and has a camp fantasy feel to it that I think is terrific. Sean Bean is actually Sean Bee-n in this, because he’s like… a hybrid bee-man? So dumb, I fucking adore it.But yeah, Eddie is amazing in his EXTRA performance.
The great thing is everyone who hasn’t seen the film assumes an impression of this performance has to be exaggerating it, but no.
The great thing is everyone who hasn’t seen the film assumes an impression of this performance has to be exaggerating it, but no.
His bits are the absolutely highlights. Every time you leave him and go back to Channing Tatum somehow playing the role of “jet boot wolfman” in the least interesting way possible is a sad time.
the film’s over-the-top baddieAbrasax does have good reason to be dramatic. After all, he creates life……and destroys it.
what’s amazing is that his performance is deliberate, his character has trauma from having his throat ripped out by wolfman: the costume designer Kym Barrett and Redmayne worked on reflecting that anxiety with the tight collars and the whisper-screaming… then some bad editing removed the line that explains it all. It’s an amazing bonkers film. high camp.
I was able to enjoy his Oscar speech so much more by chuckling at the fact that those ads with him croaking out “I will harvest this planet… tomorrow!” were still running regularly.