Ah, friends. What would we do without them? If you're Bobby Cannavale, Patricia Clarkson, or Peter Dinklage, you'd be out a seriously good part. Actor-filmmaker Tom McCarthy spent two and a half years writing ''The Station Agent'' -- the quirky tale of a gregarious hot dog vendor, a loopy artist, and a train-obsessed dwarf united by loneliness -- and crafting the leads specifically for these actors.
''I didn't have a dwarf in mind for the lead,'' says McCarthy, who saw his directing debut sell to Miramax for $1.5 million at January's Sundance Festival. ''Then I ran into Peter [who is 4 feet 5 inches tall] on the street and I thought, 'Here's a guy who has a reason to disconnect!' Because you walk down the street with Peter and people would stare and whisper. But for everyone else I wrote it without talking to them first.''
''He was very sneaky. He called and said, 'I'm writing and I need to know the name of a Cuban dish,''' says Cuban-American Cannavale, whom fans may know from TV's ''Third Watch.'' ''And I said, 'Why?' I finally pried it out of him and I would call every day and say, 'Are you finished yet? What about now?'''
The Killer Moment Behind the wheel of an SUV, Clarkson nearly runs Dinklage over. Twice.
Add your comment
The rules: Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment. If you see inappropriate language, e-mail us. An asterisk * indicates a required field.