When Daniel Craig returns next year as James Bond, he’ll be antagonized by none other than Christoph Waltz, the Austrian film star turned Tarantino standby turned… star of Horrible Bosses 2.
This is fantastic casting. With his clipped, accented English as a baseline, Waltz was able to layer on charm, elegance, and evil to produce our favorite villain of recent memory: the Nazi detective Hans Landa in Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds. Only a few minutes into the first scene, audiences already knew that Waltz had an awesome ability to serve villainy with a smile.
In anticipation of what will surely be a disturbing turn as the next Bond villain, we compiled some of Waltz’ best, and most chilling, work. Hopefully, these will tide you over until the next Bond movie is released in November 2016. It’s a bingo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpF56b9wtas
While Basterds’ opening scene is Waltz’s grand and gloriousentrée into American cinema, there’s much to be said for the thrumming tension in this later murder scene. Watch for: his seamless transition between languages, the wild rage that suddenly ignites in his eyes, and the classic Waltz blend of courtesy and violence.
In Django Unchained, Waltz plays bounty-hunter Dr. King Schultz. Observe how Waltz flips instantly from gratuitous decorum to a cocked gun and a shot through Leo DiCaprio’s chest.
As best we can tell, this German movie involves Christoph Waltz as the young owner of a doll store that likes to take obscene pictures of young women (who, of course, he dresses up as dolls). If they refuse, he strangles them – without smudging their perfect lipstick. It’s pretty terrifying and German!
He just murdered that song in cold blood.
Photos by Columbia Pictures / Everett Collection