- SignsSuccess was largely due to a strong cast, including Mel Gibson as Graham Hess, who excelled in a role that required him to fight for his faith and protect his family.
- M. Night Shyamalan originally had Clint Eastwood and Paul Newman in mind for the role of Graham Hess, but both actors were either unavailable or uninterested.
- The film saw changes to the cast and storyline, eventually leading to a more intimate portrayal of the characters and an increased emphasis on faith as a central theme.
After hitting one or two Sixth Sense And Invulnerable, M. Night ShyamalanX Signs pursued the unenviable goal of living up to the legacy the young director was building for himself in Hollywood, and largely succeeded in doing so (his next film, Villagehowever, this did not happen). A modern classic in its own right, the film is part sci-fi nightmare, part horror, part family drama, and part exploration of faith. It’s a bold mix that works to the film’s advantage, especially if one goes along with the theory that aliens are actually demons (which fixes the “water” plot hole). The cast is arguably the film’s strongest point. Both Rory Culkin And Abigail Breslin superb as the children of Hess, bringing realism to their characters that thankfully didn’t border on precocious. Joaquin Phoenix fills it with Merrill Hess with a believable brotherly bond. However, the film lives and dies with Mel Gibsonand he excels as Graham Hess, a role that calls him to be a man struggling with his faith, trying to rationalize what’s going on and protecting his family at all costs. And he wasn’t even Shyamalan’s first or second choice - they were Clint Eastwood And Paul Newman.
Mel Gibson was not M. Night Shyamalan’s first choice for the role of Graham Hess
For the role of Graham Hess, M. Night Shyamalan had certain criteria. The character was written as an older one, which dictated the age of the actor that Shyamalan was looking for. He was also allegedly looking for someone with “haunted eyes”. Of course, there were only a handful of actors at the time who would fit the bill, and one of the first actors Shyamalan approached was one of the brightest stars from that pool: Clint Eastwood. Eastwood’s filmography is full of haunted-eyed characters: Frank Horrigan from In the line of fireMitchell Gant of fire foxor like William Munny in Unforgivenwhere he used this look most effectively. Clint Eastwood had retired from acting at the time, but if he had shown interest in Signs or not didn’t matter, as the Oscar-winning actor had scheduling conflicts that would prevent him from accepting the role.
Before he finally turned to Mel Gibson, Shyamalan also turned to the venerable Paul Newman for the role of Graham Hess. Newman had no scheduling conflicts, but he simply wasn’t interested in the role. Looking at the movie now, it’s hard to imagine Graham Hess as the older character. It would certainly change the dynamic between the characters, with Hess being the elderly patriarch of a large family rather than a father figure. Eastwood and Newman both have their own strengths as actors, which would have different impact on the storytelling. Eastwood would probably have been a more established and solitary figure, while Newman would likely have been a more open and family figure. However, by making the first two choices either unavailable (Eastwood) or uninterested (Newman), Shyamalan changed the character to make him about 20 years younger. Finally, he settled on Mel Gibson, who had the haunted eyes he had been looking for all along. The rest, as they say, is history.
The Signs also had other casting problems
In an interview with Horrornews.net, Shyamalan talks about the original plans for the film. It would be “a big family affair with so many characters, a big Thanksgiving, and then the world ends”, which would make sense if Eastwood or Newman were its patriarch. But it didn’t feel right, so he reduced the character count from seven to five. The fifth character was supposed to be a nanny/teacher who lived in the house. The name associated with this role was meant to create another exciting dynamic: Toni Collette. When Shyamalan conceded her to another role, the fifth character was dropped leaving the Hess family with four.
Then just before production on Signs was about to start, Shyamalan was forced to find a new Merrill Hess. Actor Mark Ruffalo was abandoned and ready to start until a dream led him to believe he had a brain tumor. The worst thing is that he did it. A CT scan and MRI revealed a golf ball-sized tumor behind Mark Ruffalo’s left ear, diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, a noncancerous, benign brain tumor that caused a 7 percent hearing loss in that ear. It also affected his facial nerve, and after surgery to remove the tumor, his face was paralyzed for several days, and it took Ruffalo almost a year to recover. Then the role went to Joaquin Phoenixwhich arguably turned out to be for the best, as he and Gibson had an easy chemistry, with performances that complemented each other. Not that Ruffalo certainly didn’t want to, but Phoenix seems more believable as Gibson’s younger brother.
Signs could have been a significantly different beast than what finally hit theater screens, and every potential casting choice either added an element that benefited the film or an element that negatively affected it. The original plan for the extended family in the film did not allow the viewer to get to know each character intimately, and it is this closeness to the characters that makes the film work. Just as good as Signs That is to say, it’s hard to argue that there aren’t any convenient moments that break the film’s believability: Morgan’s asthma preventing him from inhaling poisonous alien/demon gas. Bo’s habit of leaving water glasses all over the house. Caroline (Cherry Jones), Graham’s wife’s dying words “go away” turn out to be instructions on how to stop the creature. But thanks to the cast that Shyamalan put together and their commitment to their roles, even if they weren’t his original choice, those narrative conveniences that would have ruined a film with a smaller cast become believable plot points that speak to an overarching theme. Signs: faith. This is an article for another time.
Source: Collider
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