TIFF '08: Paul Dano
This Guy is Gigantic
Sometimes we wonder what Paul Dano eats for breakfast. First, he steals the show in Little Miss Sunshine, the biggest little movie that could, with hardly a word of dialogue, then he manages to hold his own on the screen with Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood. Now he's got a starring role in Matt Aselton's GIGANTIC, opposite Zooey Deschanel. FilmCatcher was gushing when we sat down with him to talk about his recent exploits and new film.
Back to The 2008 Toronto Film Festival Coverage Page
Since appearing as Howie Blitzer in L.I.E., Paul Dano has played Dwayne in the feature film Little Miss Sunshine and Eli and Paul Sunday in Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood, and continues working in other, mostly independent, films. In the film Little Miss Sunshine, he played Dwayne, a teenager who took a vow of silence until he could accomplish his dream of being a test pilot. He said in an interview that it took days to practice his vow of silence. There Will Be Blood landed him on a BAFTA award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, but lost to Javier Bardem for No Country for Old Men. There Will Be Blood brought him positive reviews, with Texas Monthly saying that his performance is "so electric that the movie sags whenever he's not around." and Peter Travers remarking "All praise to the baby-faced Dano...for bringing sly cunning and unexpected ferocity to Plainview's most formidable opponent." He is also active on stage, and has appeared in several Broadway productions including A Christmas Carol, Ragtime, Inherit the Wind, A Month in the Country, A Thousand Clowns at the Roundabout Theatre and the Ethan Hawke directorial debut Things We Want during its 2007 off-Broadway run. As a side project, he also provides vocals and lead guitar for the band Mook.
Rolling ...
Since appearing as Howie Blitzer in L.I.E., Paul Dano has played Dwayne in the feature film Little Miss Sunshine and Eli and Paul Sunday in Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood, and continues working in other, mostly independent, films. In the film Little Miss Sunshine, he played Dwayne, a teenager who took a vow of silence until he could accomplish his dream of being a test pilot. He said in an interview that it took days to practice his vow of silence. There Will Be Blood landed him on a BAFTA award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, but lost to Javier Bardem for No Country for Old Men. There Will Be Blood brought him positive reviews, with Texas Monthly saying that his performance is "so electric that the movie sags whenever he's not around." and Peter Travers remarking "All praise to the baby-faced Dano...for bringing sly cunning and unexpected ferocity to Plainview's most formidable opponent." He is also active on stage, and has appeared in several Broadway productions including A Christmas Carol, Ragtime, Inherit the Wind, A Month in the Country, A Thousand Clowns at the Roundabout Theatre and the Ethan Hawke directorial debut Things We Want during its 2007 off-Broadway run. As a side project, he also provides vocals and lead guitar for the band Mook.
Rolling Stone magazine included Dano on its Hot List '07 under Hotcoming Attractions, calling his performance style "Daniel Day-Lewis + Billy Crudup x Johnny Depp."
He is rumored to be appearing in the next Todd Solondz film Life During Wartime.
read more>
close
My Cart
