Rian Johnson Gave Edward Norton A Warning Before Showing Him Glass Onion's Script
Edward Norton is an actor who enjoys going big. Sometimes that can perfectly befit a project, like when he plays a self-important theater actor in "Birdman," or it can be borderline offensive, like when he plays a detective with Tourette syndrome in "Motherless Brooklyn." In a lot of ways, you can tell whether or not the movie you are watching has a clearly-defined tone based solely on how effective a performance Norton is giving.
With his acting in Rian Johnson's whodunit comedy sequel "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery," Norton not only slides seamlessly into the role of tech bro billionaire Miles Bron, but he also completely understands the comic tone with which Jonhson's latest foray into the murder mystery realm needs to operate at. While the first "Knives Out" is an incredibly funny movie, its comedy plays at a somewhat low-key level, born out of small character interactions. "Glass Onion," on the other hand, wants to play in a sillier realm, and Rian Johnson needed to make it clear to the folks involved that this film wouldn't just be a retread. Norton understanding that tonal shift was paramount in the decision for Johnson to cast him. Thankfully, he got it.
A little bigger, a little broader
"Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" is bombastic, often to the point of becoming a pure cartoon. Being able to do that while still addressing the issues of today walks a razor's edge, and Rian Johnson looked for inspiration in a film that accomplished that better than any other: Stanley Kubrick's Cold War satire "Dr. Strangelove." Speaking with GQ, Johnson explained how whether or not the tone would land laid mainly at the feet of the Miles Bron character — being an eccentric billionaire — and how Edward Norton needed to know this before he agreed to be part of the movie:
"[F]irst of all, tonally, that kind of took the movie, made the movie a little broader by its very nature. I think when I had my first conversation with Edward Norton, before he read the script I warned him, 'We go a little more "Strangelove" with this one.' This is a whole little bigger, but that's entirely because of who it's about and what it's about."
Johnson didn't want to base Miles Bron on any one specific real-life billionaire, either. That way Norton wouldn't hone in on just one idea. He wanted to explore the concept, not parody a person:
"[Y]ou want to make fun of these people, and throw poop at them. There's also the very American thing in all of us of kind of mistaking wealth for competence, and wanting them at the same time to be like Willy Wonka ... That kind of tension and the way that we're all dealing with sort of the revelation of 'Maybe it's not the best idea to trust these people.'"
In the end, Norton got exactly what Johnson was going for and delivered a perfectly pitched comic performance, understanding both the absurdity and danger that a guy like this embodies. You can see the results for yourselves by checking out "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" when it begins streaming on Netflix on December 23, 2022.