When it comes to surprising roles, you can always trust Academy Award winner Javier Bardem to embody a character in ways you never imagined. That’s how the Spanish actor made Anton Chigurh from the acclaimed thriller movie No Country For Old Men one of the 21st century’s most memorable villains, as well as leaving his mark on established franchises like 007 and Pirates of the Caribbean. But none of his fans were prepared for Bardem’s next role when it was announced: Mr. Hector P. Valenti in upcoming family film Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile.
Collider’s Rebecca Landman visited the set of Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile and spoke with director Will Speck (The Switch) about the choice to cast Bardem in the movie, and the filmmaker revealed that the production team selected Bardem precisely because they wanted Lyle's owner to transcend his comedic and one-dimensional roots. Speck also commented that everybody was shocked by the actor’s decision to participate, but it did take some convincing:
"We said 'Javier', and the studio said 'well, you’ll never get him, but good luck'. And then six Zooms later, he finally, reluctantly said yes. I think he was nervous about jumping into something that he perceived to be very comedic in his mind. Because he was really swinging out there...We talked to him about the integrity of the character and finding the dramatic roots to the character ultimately so that it wasn’t just played for jokes, but that we wanted to play this as a fully dimensional, real character and that, that’s why we wanted him. Because we wanted it to not be an expected performance of something you’ve seen. And what was exciting about him was I feel like you haven’t seen this guy before. You haven’t seen Javier do this and his voice was great."
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile is an adaptation of the popular children's books of the same name by author Bernard Waber. The film stars musician Shawn Mendes as the titular crocodile, a reptile who loves singing, baths, and caviar. Aside from Mendes and Bardem, the cast also features Constance Wu, Winslow Fegley, Scoot McNairy, and Brett Gelman.
The family adventure is helmed by Speck and his directing partner, Josh Gordon. The screenplay is written by William Davies, who previously adapted Puss in Boots and How to Train Your Dragon. The movie’s original songs were composed by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the duo behind the hit musical La La Land. The duo is joined in music making by Mendes, Ari Afsar, Emily Gardner Xu Hall, Mark Sonnenblick, and Joriah Kwamé.
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile premieres in theaters on October 7. You can watch the trailer below:
Check out the official synopsis here
When the Primm family (Constance Wu, Scoot McNairy, Winslow Fegley) moves to New York City, their young son Josh struggles to adapt to his new school and new friends. All of that changes when he discovers Lyle - a singing crocodile (Shawn Mendes) who loves baths, caviar and great music-living in the attic of his new home. The two become fast friends, but when Lyle’s existence is threatened by evil neighbor Mr. Grumps (Brett Gelman), the Primm’s must band together with Lyle’s charismatic owner, Hector P. Valenti (Javier Bardem), to show the world that family can come from the most unexpected places and there’s nothing wrong with a big singing crocodile with an even bigger personality.