The Simple Reason Billy Bob Thornton Refuses To Play A Villain In Blockbuster Movies

Billy Bob Thornton has, of course, played his fair share of criminals, lowlifes, and scumbags. In one of his more recognizable early roles, he played a crass, overconfident gambler in "Tombstone," a guy in need of a lesson. In Oliver Stone's "U-Turn" a few years later, he played a greasy and seemingly dishonest mechanic. And, of course, he played a crass, alcoholic womanizer and enraged misanthrope in the two "Bad Santa" movies. He is currently starring in the hit series "Landman" as Tommy Norris, a ruthless and sometimes cruel oil company CEO. Thornton is no stranger to dark characters with villainous traits.

But one might note that Thornton has yet to play an outright supervillain. He has never played, say, the cackling mastermind behind a giant criminal enterprise being investigated by a stalwart Tom Hanks (nor was he ever the bitter, world domination-bent ultra-spy opposite Tom Cruise in a "Mission: Impossible" movie). Thornton has certainly starred in his share of giant action blockbusters. He was one of on-the-ground government representatives in Michael Bay's not entirely science-challenged "Armageddon," he played a U.S. President in "Love, Actually," and recently turned up in the $200 million trifle "The Gray Man." Big budgets don't scare Thornton, and he doesn't shy away from working opposite gigantic Hollywood A-listers.

But he is never the villain in those projects, and that is a conscious choice. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Thornton noted that playing heavies in mainstream blockbusters can paint an actor with a certain kind of brush. The actor/director wants to have access to a wide variety of roles, but he worries that playing a villain would lead to typecasting. While there's no doubt Thornton could play a villain with aplomb, he's deliberately steered clear of such roles to, essentially, avoid being too memorable.

This isn't just academic, either. Thornton has actually refused to play supervillains in the past. He was offered the role of the Green Goblin in Sam Raimi's 2002 film "Spider-Man," but he passed for the above-stated reasons. (That and he didn't want to sit for hours and hours in a makeup chair being transformed into a rubber-faced goon.) He was once also offered the role of Owen Davian, the cold-hearted villain at the center of J.J. Abrams' "Mission: Impossible III." That part ultimately went to Philip Seymour Hoffman. 

Speaking to Rolling Stone, Thornton explained that, really, he turned down these roles because of a pertinent piece of advice he had taken years earlier:

"Years ago, some old character actor told me, 'You don't play the bad guy in a popcorn movie because that's who you'll be forever. Don't try to kill Tom Cruise or Tom Hanks, America's Sweethearts. Because the audience is going to remember you that way.' I always tell my agents, 'I'm never going to try to kill Tom Cruise or Tom Hanks, ain't going to happen.'" 

And, lo, Thornton has never played a gun-toting fiend after Tom Cruise's blood, even though he was given the opportunity. As for typecasting, Thornton seems to have no issues playing lawmen, cops, soldiers, federal agents, or government officials, as he has tackled those types of roles multiple times. In addition to his turns in "Armageddon" and "The Gray Man," Thornton has also played a marine in "For the Boys," a political strategist in "Primary Colors," a sheriff in "The Badge," an FBI Agent in "Eagle Eye," and a police detective in "Faster." 

None of those characters, as far as we know, wanted to kill Tom Cruise.