That Guy! tends to focus on beloved or quirky character actors, but there's a different species of That Guy! who's just as worthy of attention: the so-called "working famous". These are actors and actresses who aren't especially noteworthy for character parts, quirky looks, or distinctive voices; they're normal-looking men and women who seem like they're perfectly capable of filling leading roles, but never quite make it to the upper echelons of stardom and spend long and often rich careers constantly working in Hollywood without ever becoming household names. Scott Wilson, one of our favorite examples of the working famous, seemed like he was destined for superstardom; after taking up acting more or less on whim after hitch-hiking to Los Angeles from his native Georgia, he starred in two groundbreaking films at the age of twenty-five (In the Heat of the Night and In Cold Blood). Somehow, though, despite starting his career with two breakout roles in blockbuster films, never quite crossed the threshhold into movie stardom. Handsome and versatile, with a laconic Southern drawl and a sad demeanor, Wilson could have been a huge star; but he's never allowed the fact that he didn't go on to become a household name to get in the way of working constantly and making himself a consummate professional. Wilson has gone one to become one of the most reliable actors in the business, capable of delivering terrific, emotionally rich performances even in small roles (such as in the 1974 Robert Redford adaptation of The Great Gatsby). Capable of light, breezy comic performances as well as intense, explosive dramatic roles, he's seemingly up for any challenge as long as it gives him a chance to stretch, and he's never shied away from playing against type. While he's mixed in a decent amount of family films and television work to pay the bills, he's been drawn for over forty years to dark, compelling, risky character roles, and his reputation as a reliable pro has attracted a number of well-known younger actors to working with him. His career has undergone a mini-renaissance of late, with some of his most memorable performances coming after he hit age sixty. His next role (in the Philip K. Dick adaptation Radio Free Albemuth) will be as the President of the United States, and he's been married for twenty-five years to a woman named Heavenly, so he must be doing something right in his life.
Where to see Scott Wilson at his best:
IN COLD BLOOD (1967)
Wilson is so polished and natural in the film adaptation of Truman Capote's infamous non-fiction novel about the senseless murder of the Clutter family in Texas, it's hard to believe it was only his second film role ever. Having previously wowed audiences as the murder suspect in the well-received In the Heat of the Night, Wilson is absolutely dynamite as the confused, wheedling killer Dick Hickock. He's paired opposite the veteran actor Robert Blake in one of his most memorable roles, and the two of them take the movie to a higher level almost by themselves. It also helps that the young Wilson bore an almost eerie resemblance to the actual Hickock.
THE NINTH CONFIGURATION (1980)
In one of his most emotionally intense roles, Wilson was cast by William Peter Blatty as the mentally fragile ex-astronaut Captain Billy Cutshaw in this cult favorite. It's a demanding role, not only because of its depths of sorrow and need, but because it requires Wilson to make the transition from broad comic delivery early on in the film to cynical aggression in its middle passages to vulnerable despair late in the movie. It's pretty close to being the performance of a lifetime, and while the movie wasn't a commercial success, he was rewarded by those who did see it with a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
JUNEBUG (2005)
In the middle of enjoying an exceptionally rewarding late-career comeback over the last decade, Wilson found himself playing a small-town Southern patriarch in this acclaimed indie drama. Although Amy Adams rightly captured the attention of moviegoers and critics in her role as the impossibly hopeful pregnant sister of the male lead, it's Scott Wilson's performance that seems to anchor the film from the moment he steps on the screen. Showing how far he's progressed as an actor, he manages to dominate every scene he's in with his very presence — nearly silent, but holding impossible, hard-earned wisdom on his lined face whenever we see him.