Harrison Ford Reveals Favorite Movie He’s Worked On And It’s A Heroic Masterpiece
Harrison Ford choose 42, the Jackie Robinson biopic starring Chadwick Boseman, as one of the movies he's the most proud of filming.
Some actors become known for a legendary role that defines them for a career; Sean Connery as James Bond, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man. Harrison Ford is one of the few that become known for two legendary roles; much in the way Sylvester Stallone can thank John Rambo and Rocky Balboa for his career, Ford can thank Han Solo and Indiana Jones for his own. But that doesn’t mean those are the only roles he has had to stand by, and in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Harrison Ford reveals that his character in 42 is one of the most underrated in his career.
In the interview, it becomes clear that Ford doesn’t concern himself with the success of many of his movies, remarking that he doesn’t know why some movies do well and others don’t. He even responds with a simple shake of the head when asked if he cares about winning an Oscar. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t care, just that he goes into movies for other reasons and the two films that he is the proudest of aren’t the ones you would think. Harrison Ford says that 42 is one of the films he is the proudest of.
I’m proud of 42. I’m proud of K-19: The Widowmaker, where I played a Russian submarine captain. But I think they’re good movies — that’s why I’m proud of them. Each film has its own destiny, and I don’t go back and parse the experience
Harrison Ford on the films he’s proud of
He picked a great role with 42, taking on the part of Branch Rickey in the film about Jackie Robinson, the first African-American player to break into Major League Baseball. Rickey is the other man most widely held responsible for Robinson’s journey to the majors; as the owner of the now-defunct Brooklyn Dodgers, he signed the player and gave him a chance. While he made the decision, it was largely Robinson who got the brunt of the retribution by the fans and the game.
Harrison Ford told Collider after the film was released that the strength of the script was the main thing that attracted him to the project; not being a baseball fan or a player of the game himself. His approach to playing Rickey was to remove as much of himself from the character as possible, believing that people didn’t want to see a Harrison Ford lookalike in 42, but they would rather see a Branch Rickey lookalike. He also spoke about the fact that he mostly used audio recordings of the man instead of video footage since there was much less of the latter.
He starred in the film alongside the late Chadwick Boseman, who turned in a career-defining performance as Jackie Robinson, Nicole Beharie, Alan Tudyk, and Lucas Black. While he also named K-9: The Widowmaker as another role that he was proud of, Harrison Ford’s performance in 42 was one for the ages. The film is also most definitely on the list of the best baseball films in the last few decades.
For a man that has a long list of iconic characters, his performance as a real-life baseball owner belongs on your watchlist. Harrison Ford in 42 is a good pick for one of the best in his career.
