Adrien Brody may be known for his intense, emotionally heavy performances, but he’s eager to show he doesn’t take himself too seriously.
The Oscar-winning actor — who most recently portrayed the tortured architect László Tóth in “The Brutalist” — pokes fun at his reputation for brooding roles in a new Super Bowl spot for TurboTax. In the 45-second ad, which will air during the Big Game next month, he plays a tax expert as a satirized version of himself, practicing his lines in a trailer (“I can handle that for you!”) with dramatic gravitas.
“I loved the idea of making fun of myself as this very serious dramatic actor, and to play on this concept of me,” Brody tells Variety. While he jumped on the chance for this comedic role, however, he’s quick to add that “he loves doing dramatic work and has no intention of not doing it.”
His next dramatic role comes in the fall when he makes his Broadway debut in “Fear of 13,” alongside Tessa Thompson. The play, which he originally starred in on the West End, tells the true story of Nick Yarris (Brody), a Pennsylvania native who spends more than two decades on death row for a rape and murder he insists he didn’t commit. Through a series of prison visits with a volunteer named Jackie (Thompson), Nick shares the impulses and consequences that shaped his life.
Ahead of “Fear of 13” and his Super Bowl ad, Variety caught up with Brody to talk about making his Broadway debut, working with Thompson and what he and Timothée Chalamet talked about during their heated Oscars race last year:
It’s been 15 years since your last Super Bowl ad appearance. How did you get involved with TurboTax for this spot?
When TurboTax presented this concept to me, I literally laughed out loud. There’s just so many great bits and the idea of making fun of myself as this very serious dramatic actor who takes on the responsibility of playing a character as a TurboTax expert and assuming that there’s a ton of drama and anguish, but really the gag is that there’s no drama with TurboTax, and it’s just really fun. I love doing dramatic work and have no intention of not doing it but I like to do funny, comedic work as well.
What are your Game Day plans?
I can’t wait to see it and I hope to be in the room with friends when it surprises them. I haven’t told anybody really within my group that I got this spot coming because really want them to get a kick out of it just popping up. But hopefully they’re paying attention and not eating a slice of pizza or something.
In the spot, the director tells you to be less serious. Have you ever gotten a note like that on a real set?
No, but I don’t usually take roles where less intense is really the direction. Sometimes it’s even, ‘Can you go further in the intensity?’ It’s really important to be able to laugh, not only at your own qualities but life is full of complexity and you got to find humor in that.
You haven’t signed on to your next film project since ‘The Brutalist’ Are we going to see you in a comedy next?
Well, definitely not. I live up to my reputation. As you probably know I signed on to do ‘The Fear of 13’ on Broadway. I had been waiting to find something that felt deeply challenging and meaningful.
What was the process like talking to Nick Yarris in preparing for your role in ‘Fear of 13’?
I performed a rendition of this on the West End about a year and a half ago. I spent a lot of time with Nick. He’s had a very challenging life, it’s a story of his enduring more than two decades on death row. But also it speaks to pervasive injustice, and even when we have systems in place that are there to protect us all, there’s great tragedy and misuse of it. I find being able to represent characters that have experienced those hardships, and hopefully help shed some light on that, is really important.
It is both your and Tessa Thompson’s Broadway debut. What was it like working with her?
I love Tessa’s work, and she’s just gonna be great. And I can’t wait. We both can’t wait.
We’re in the midst of another awards season. Last year, you beat Timothée Chalamet for best actor – which was particularly ironic since he would have broken your record for the youngest winner if he had won. Did you talk to Timothée at all during that race or after your win?
Yeah, we all interacted quite a bit. I mean it was a beautiful time and we were all very immersed in our work. We all had responsibilities to support our films. And it was exciting. It was a very exciting time.
English (US) ·