Woody Harrelson Goes To War In 'The Messenger'
The Messenger doesn't mark the first time that Woody Harrelson — an anti-war activist in real life — has portrayed a soldier. The actor played military men in both 1997's Wag the Dog and 1998's The Thin Red Line.
The Messenger doesn't mark the first time that Woody Harrelson — an anti-war activist in real life — has portrayed a soldier. The actor played military men in both 1997's Wag the Dog and 1998's The Thin Red Line.
Fresh off his endearingly oddball turn as a Twinkies-crazed zombie-slayer in Zombieland, Woody Harrelson stars in two new films this month: 2012 and The Messenger. The former is another post-apocalyptic fable, but the latter, directed by Oren Moverman, is a soberer sort of story — a drama about two American soldiers tasked with delivering death notices to the families of their fallen comrades.
Harrelson plays Capt. Tony Stone, a feisty veteran of the Army's Casualty Notification service. He's partnered with Will Montgomery (Ben Foster), who's just returned from Iraq — and as bearers of the worst news, the two soldiers form a cathartic bond.
The film opens Nov. 13, and Harrelson's performance is already generating Oscar talk. He joins Fresh Air contributor Dave Davies for a conversation about the film.
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