Closer USA – August 05, 2019

7

1998 FREE

THINKING

Playing

a freed slave in

Beloved was

intense for him.

“I think it is

unfathomable to

understand how

difficult that

journey was for

peoplefrom

sl avery— [tobe]

pushedout into

theworld,to feel

that theirwifeor

husbandis not

goingto be sold,

that theyare

goingto be paid

fo r theirlabor.”

6

1994 LABOROF GLOVE

Portrayinga gruffmajor-league

baseball managerwhoseteam’s

fo rtuneschangeas a resultof celestial

interventionin the surprisehitAngels in

theOutfieldwas a joyforhim.“It’sabout

ca ringandlovingandresolvingpain—

eventhoughit is a comedy,”he said.

“I justfeltit wassucha goodstory.”

5

1989 NOT LONESOME It was

a relatively small TV role in an

ensemble cast, but Southern

fans don’t let Danny forget his Western

miniseries Lonesome Dove (with Ricky

Schroder). “I tell you, when I come within

three states of Texas, someone says

something about [it],” he’s shared. “It’s

like a national anthem.”

3

1985 OFF-COLOR “We’re all

products of our environment,’’

reflected Danny of his role as an

abusive husband in The Color Purple (with

Whoopi Goldberg). While he was sensitive

novel, depicted men as villains, “I prefer to

remember the reaction of older black

women, who say, ‘That’s the way it was.’ ”

8

2001 SHY AWAY How is he
similar to Henry, the accountant
who proposes to a divorced
matriarch (Anjelica Huston) in The Royal
Tenenbaums? “He’s shy, to some degree.
And I remember
describing myself as
a kid growing up as
a closet introvert.”

10

2019 TODIEFORDanny’snew

zo mbiefilmThe DeadDon’tDie

(withBill Murray)combines

co medyandhorror,a mix he hadno

troublehandling.“There’snota large

variancebetweencomedyandthriller

an d action,so I don’tfindmyselfworking

to o differentlyin thosegenres.”

4

1987 COP TO IT Danny

played a detective partnered

with a loose cannon (Mel

Gibson) in Lethal Weapon, which

launched three sequels. Why was it a

hit? “It’s the humor, mixed with action

and special effects. All that came

together, and the chemistry between

the two of us was undeniable.”

9

2006 DREAM JOB “I did love doing

[my] role in Dreamgirls,” Danny said

of his part in the big-screen take on

the Motown-inspired Broadway musical (with

Eddie Murphy and Jamie Foxx). “There is so

much lore around these men who were music

managers [that] sent all the African-American

artists around. They knew talent and could

say, ‘This is the one.’ ”

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