Few actors working today have a track record as interesting as Ewan McGregor. Once an indie darling shallow grave and Trainspotting fame, McGregor became one of the actual faces of modern star Wars franchise thanks to his debut as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Hidden threat. While McGregor has certainly appeared in other blockbusters, he has worked on a variety of projects, including historical dramas, musicals, romantic comedies, art-house projects, and even animated films. If there is an actor whose next project does seem unpredictable, it’s McGregor; he is a veteran of the big screen, small screen and stage who is good at storytelling.
Anyone with that kind of experience and range has a duty to share their experience, and McGregor has often acted as writers and storytellers. It’s pretty obvious why; McGregor cannot be assigned to any one role, so it is much easier for him to assume that he is well versed in various fields of knowledge. If you watch any interview that McGregor gives, you will see that he is often eloquent, showing that he is ready to fully commit himself to even the most failed project. Considering he made a film adaptation american pastoral and starred in plays William Shakespeare and Tom StoppardMcGregor is clearly in awe of the power of the written word.
The possibilities of an actor are limited if he plays the same role. Even if his fans have been demanding for years that McGregor return to star Wars franchise, Disney+ miniseries Obi-Wan Kenobi was a crushing disappointment. However, the writing game allowed McGregor to use many different genres, tones, and acting styles; it is clear that this is the role for which he has always been best suited.
Ewan McGregor’s Early Roles as a Romance Writer
Early in his career, McGregor was often cast in romantic roles, where the idea of being a writer was integral to his charisma. Alex Low shallow grave is a self-proclaimed “hack journalist” who looks for sordid stories that could generate inflammatory headlines; his penchant for danger, combined with his youthful ignorance of the trade, quickly puts him in danger. However, McGregor is much more sincere and idealistic than the impoverished writer Christian in Baz Luhrmannmusical Moulin rouge! Christian’s belief that he can save Satine (Nicole Kidman) from its brutal work environment, with the power of beautiful words, makes the film’s flirtation more charming and its grief more devastating.
There is a specific historical context that McGregor identifies in his historical roles. In an old-fashioned screwball comedy Down with loveset in New York City in 1962, McGregor plays the charming celebrity writer Catcher Block, whose byline in Know magazine brought him impressive popularity. Kutcher is prone to the sexist views of the era, but this is due to his relationship with aspiring writer Barbara Novak (Rene Zellweger) that he understands that he needs to develop. Fittingly, this revelation comes in the form of a personal revelation Kutcher writes about her changing beliefs, culminating with Barbara and Kutcher vowing to work together on a new book in which they share the credit.
We see a similar evolution in the mindset of one of McGregor’s characters in a 2006 biopic. Miss Potter. Established publisher Norman Warne (McGregor) sees no value in a children’s book written by a woman, but after hearing the life stories of Beatrix Potter (Zellweger), he was persuaded to change his mind. It is through their collaboration in creating books that flirting and, ultimately, romance is born.
Ewan McGregor’s roles as a struggling writer
As McGregor got older, he was able to pick up these lead roles to explore the hardships writers go through when they deal with middle age. In times of reflection and fear of the future, it can be difficult for writers to approach their craft with the same vigor they did when they were young. In an underrated spy thriller Our kind of traitorMcGregor plays academic and writer Perry McKendrick, who is looking to mend his relationship with his wife (Naomie Harris), taking her on an expensive vacation. After an extramarital affair, Perry struggles to find inspiration in the words that once fascinated him.
Perry’s knowledge goes to his advantage when he begins to communicate with the Russian gangster Dima (Stellan Skarsgard) who discovers that a depressed English professor is smarter than most Americans he has met. However, knowledge does not always benefit McGregor’s writers; in ghost writerhe plays a seasoned biographer tasked with writing the prime minister’s memoirs (Pierce Brosnan). The unnamed writer’s diligence actually verifies his sources and fleshes out his work, which ultimately draws him into a world of conspiracies and hidden secrets.
Ewan McGregor’s writing roles have matured over time
If Christian was a young writer who thought he could heal the world with prose, then McGregor’s character Oliver Fields Beginners shows how these optimistic attitudes develop. Oliver is a designer and writer going through a period of emotional upheaval as he just found out that his father (Christopher Plummer) is both gay and dying. Oliver’s work begins to reflect his confused emotions, but becomes more vivid and eloquent when he begins to fall in love with French actress Anna Wallace (Melanie Laurent).
Oliver feels like the kind of writer Christian could grow up to be, and likewise McGregor’s character Dave Brill in miles ahead looks like the crappy journalist Alex from shallow grave eventually would. Self-proclaimed music reporter (with shaky ties to rolling stone), Dave sets out to get a quick, attention-grabbing headline by interviewing reclusive Miles Davis (Don Cheadle). He is willing to spend time with Miles to capture all the juicy details of his story, which inevitably leads to trouble as they embark on a series of misadventures.
Both of McGregor’s parents were teachers, so it’s no wonder he could play writers so realistically. McGregor is an actor who has changed a lot in his three decades in the industry, and his upcoming projects suggest he won’t be retiring anytime soon. Where he’ll go next is unclear, but if there’s a role he should be remembered for, it must be that of charming, evil, clueless, brilliant, disillusioned and brooding characters who call themselves writers.
Source: Collider
