If you didn’t know we were in May you’d swear this was an April Fool’s Day joke. But, it is not. GAME OF THRONES actor Peter Dinklage will play 1970’s actor Hervé Villechaize (pictured) in an HBO Films presentation. He is joined by Jamie Dornan, of Fifty Shades of Grey and The Fall recognition, in the greenlit work.
The work is crafted by Sacha Gervasi (writer of Tom Hanks’ The Terminal) who will write and direct this project. Gervasi was said to be the last person, a journalist at the time, to interview Hervé Villechaize. Hervé committed suicide in 1995 at age 50. Mr. Villechaize was known for such remembered roles as James Bond villain Nick Nack in The Man With The Golden Gun and Tattoo in TV’s Fantasy Island (“Da plane, Da plane!”) for seven seasons and even played himself in an episode of THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW in 1992.
But why is there an HBO TV-movie in development about this actor? The work is said to center on an unlikely friendship that evolves over one wild night in L.A. between a struggling journalist, Danny Tate (Dornan), and actor Hervé Villechaize (Dinklage), the world’s most famous gun-toting dwarf, resulting in life-changing consequences for both. In a quote, Gervasi said “Hervé wasn’t just a pop culture icon; he was one of the most charming, cultured and dangerous people I’ve ever met. His is the story of a unique misfit trying to find his place in the world.”
Villechaize was born in Paris, France to an English mother and suffered a lifetime of affliction as he had normal-sized internal organs compacted in his small body. He came to America to pursue an acting career he started in France and had Kathy Self as his companion. She discovered his body the morning of 09.04.93, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot.
It sounds, unique and odd, yet interesting. Who’d of thought that the life of this little person would be fodder for a great story? Dinklage and Gervasi certainly did and have been working on bringing Hervé’s story to life for a while now. They finally get the chance with HBO.
(Source: Deadline)
3 comments
“Who’d of thought…”?? I would’ve thought a published journalist would know better than to use “would of”.
Funny because I never call myself a journalist. Plus, I use Grammerly to check everything and it didn’t flag anything, so who’d a thought you’d waste your time?
Thanks for at least reading the post.
I never think of reading and learning as a waste of time. I actually enjoyed your article. You’re welcome.