Last week, The New York Times ran an interview with Paul Thomas Anderson (where he correctly stated that movies should only be two hours long) that naturally centered on his creative process and his latest film, Licorice Pizza. For those who saw the film, Leonardo DiCaprio‘s father, George, makes a small cameo as a water bed salesman, and according to Anderson, he was “the right man for the job.”
In a newly released outtake from NYT writer Kyle Buchanan, Anderson reveals how he landed Leo’s dad for the part, and how it ended up being a serendipitous casting choice:
I created a picture of a guy who owned a wig shop that sold these water beds, and I couldn’t put my finger on it. I kept saying, “Who do I know that looks like this?” And like a bolt of lightning, I remember, like, “Leo’s dad looks exactly like this.” So I tracked him down, asked him if he’d ever be interested in being in a film. He said, “Sure.” I explained the scenario to him. He said, “Sounds great. Did Leo tell you that I owned a water bed company?” It was called Foggy Bottom.
I’m obsessed with Harriet Sansom Harris’s completely deranged LICORICE PIZZA cameo as a wacked-out talent agent. So of course I asked PTA about her pic.twitter.com/jFji8aFo19
— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) December 1, 2021
Interestingly, Leo has never worked with Anderson and famously turned down the role of Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights. His dad, on the other hand, knew better than to pass on starring in a PTA movie. Especially since he had all this experience.
(Via Kyle Buchanan on Twitter)