‘The Fall Guy’ Proves Aaron Taylor-Johnson Is at His Best When He’s a Himbo

Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for The Fall Guy.

The Big Picture

• Aaron Taylor-Johnson showcases his versatility by playing subversive roles in comedic action films with a touch of humanity.
• Taylor-Johnson brings depth to his characters, encompassing arrogant yet clueless assassins and incompetent, egocentric action stars.
• By taking on quirky and comedic roles, Taylor-Johnson proves his ability to shine in unconventional character-driven performances.

Despite only being in his early 30s, Aaron Taylor-Johnson has already developed one of the most versatile careers of any leading man of his generation. Between starring as John Lennon in Nowhere Boy, leading a superhero franchise with Kick-Ass, winning a Golden Globe for a spine-chilling villain role, and bringing a touch of humanity to the Godzilla series, Taylor-Johnson has put himself in a position to play quintessential “movie star” roles. However, Taylor-Johnson’s work with director David Leitch suggests that his physical comedy skills are just as strong as his smoldering charisma.

While Leitch is a filmmaker known for crafting groundbreaking action sequences, there’s an element of cheeky humor in all of his films. Leitch often provides an interesting perspective on genres that viewers may already think they’ve seen countless times before; Bullet Train reveals a wacky group of characters that inhabit the world of espionage, and The Fall Guy takes a darkly amusing behind-the-scenes look at the production of a major Hollywood action film. In both films, Leitch showed his eye for subversive casting, as Taylor-Johnson subverted expectations by playing a parody of hyper-masculine action heroes.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson Plays an Incompetent Assassin in ‘Bullet Train’

While the novel of the same name by Kōtarō Isaka was a more straightforward espionage thriller, Leitch’s adaptation of Bullet Train heightened the absurdity to create a completely tongue-in-cheek stab at an action movie. Set within the confines of a train making the long trek between Tokyo and Kyoto, the film centers on the assassin Ladybug (Brad Pitt) as he attempts to pick up a briefcase of cash. Early on in his mission, he encounters the assassins Tangerine (Taylor-Johnson) and Lemon (Brian Tyree Henry) as they attempt to bring the son (Logan Lerman) of the Russian gangster known as “The White Death” (Michael Shannon) to safety.

It’s the incompetence of Taylor-Johnson’s character that serves as the inciting incident of Bullet Train. After the son is mysteriously killed, Tangerine and Lemon are forced to fend off rival assassins as they prepare to meet with the vengeance of The White Death. Taylor-Johnson carries himself with the arrogance of a bored expert, yet never shows that he actually has the skills to back up his experience; his frequent looks of befuddlement indicate that he is as clueless as to what’s going on as Ladybug is. The attempts that Tangerine makes to seem “in control” allow Taylor-Johnson to underscore how fragile the character’s ego is.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson Brings Out the Sensitive Side in ‘Bullet Train’s Tangerine

Taylor-Johnson does a great job of playing an egocentric professional who doesn’t have the skills to back up his self-aggrandizing. Early on in the film, Taylor-Johnson hints at Tangerine’s experience hunting down the world’s most dangerous criminals, alluding to a dark past that still leaves him traumatized. While Taylor-Johnson’s self-serious demeanor makes these lines amusing, it becomes even more hilarious when Tangerine makes mistake after mistake. He proves to be ill-suited to defend against The White Death’s daughter (Joey King), who makes him a pawn within her vengeance scheme. It becomes increasingly evident that Tangerine’s career is far less impressive than he claims.

Taylor-Johnson’s bewildered nature makes the film an even more striking career choice; while, initially, Tangerine seems like a generic action hero, Taylor-Johnson shows that he is surprisingly sensitive. A few emotional scenes between Tangerine and Lemon reveal that there is a deep respect that the two share for each other; Taylor-Johnson indicates that while Tangerine enjoys snapping at his partner, it’s Lemon’s words of wisdom that have kept the pair alive for years. The surprising moments of intimacy that Taylor-Johnson intertwines within his rapid-fire comedic line delivery show just how delicate Tangerine is.

The film certainly does not have a shortage of action scenes, but Taylor-Johnson’s Bullet Train performance is far more comedic than it is imposing. Tangerine may be well versed at gunplay, but he’s far less equipped to engage in combat in an environment where he has less control over the parameters. A kinetic brawl between Tangerine and Ladybug quickly devolves into slapstick comedy when the two assassins begin pelting each other with items from a nearby kitchen. Tangerine’s insistence on looking intimidating the entire time makes the scene even funnier; his performance has more in common with the comedy of Buster Keaton than it does with John Wick. It’s amusing to see how Taylor-Johnson characterizes Tangerine’s increased frustration as his situation becomes more dire. While, at first, he tries to impress his opponents through his formal fighting skills, Tangerine’s survival instincts turn primal when he tries to turn any available item into a weapon.

‘The Fall Guy’ Lets Aaron Taylor-Johnson Lampoon Action Movie Stars

Although it develops a surprisingly nuanced mystery at its center, The Fall Guy succeeds by lampooning the larger-than-life personalities that are involved in Hollywood productions. Taylor-Johnson portrays a satirical version of a famous movie star; the character of Tom Ryder is highly eccentric and takes ridiculous measures to ensure that his films have a level of authenticity. The thick drawl and highly mannered physicality that Taylor-Johnson adds show that Ryder seeks to benefit from a system that he does not truly understand; his director Jodie (Emily Blunt) is forced to use him like an oversized prop because he doesn’t understand how camera shots work.

Taylor-Johnson does a great job at showing how shallow this personality is; despite the fame he has attained, Ryder allows his stuntman Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) to perform the most dangerous scenes. Taylor-Johnson hilariously shows how out of touch Ryder is with reality. While Colt is shocked to learn that he was intentionally put in danger during the performance of a dangerous stunt, Ryder dismisses his injuries as merely a reality of their profession. What makes the line delivery amusing is that Taylor-Johnson doesn’t suggest Ryder is aware of the consequences of his actions. He’s simply gotten so used to playing movie heroes that he thinks that he’s become one in real life.

The Fall Guy aims to expose the undervalued importance of stunt performers by showing how insidious Hollywood figures take them for granted. While he ultimately proves to be involved in covering up a murder, Taylor-Johnson characterizes Ryder as a completely incompetent villain. Ryder is so intent on explaining his own genius that he doesn’t realize he’s fed Colt the information he needs to reveal his crimes; he is thrust into a trap where he’s forced to reveal that he’s not only a toxic person but a complete coward. Ryder is a character that the audience is intended to hate, and Taylor-Johnson ensures that the viewers are always laughing at him, not with him. Taylor-Johnson is unafraid to look completely silly; between running around a dangerous set and hanging off of a helicopter, Ryder is generally in a position where his survival is based on sheer dumb luck. The contrast between his charismatic screen persona and his thick-headed actions off-set are hilarious because of how wildly different Taylor-Johnson reveals the two personas to be.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson Succeeds by Taking Subversive Roles

The industry has certainly taken note of Taylor-Johnson’s inherent charisma and physicality, as his name has often been floated as a potential replacement for Daniel Craig in the next era of the James Bond franchise. Bullet Train and The Fall Guy allow Taylor-Johnson to make fun of the type of roles he easily could have taken. Theoretically, he could have played more traditional action heroes; in fact, Taylor-Johnson will next be seen as the titular anti-hero in Sony’s Marvel spinoff Kraven the Hunter. However, it’s more entertaining to see him in roles where he is the butt of a joke. “Playing dumb” is not as easy as it appears to be, but Taylor-Johnson has mastered the art of playing goofy figures who don’t feel like outliers within already serious movies. While he’d be more than capable of taking on leading roles, Taylor-Johnson’s strongest work to date suggests that he’s much better suited to be a character actor.

The Fall Guy is in theaters now.

Get Tickets