But this year, Ford went in another direction.
We want to seeyou.
But I was always anxious to play characters.
Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
They said, Oh, no, no, no.'
Branch Rickey is such a particular character, almost a 19th-century character out of Dickens or something says Helgeland.
So in my head, I thought I need to have a character actor to pull this off.
I thought, nothing against Harrison Ford but I dont need a movie star.
I loved the language of the guy, I loved his style.
So I set out to wear Brian down.
I tried a couple of other avenues to approach him, and he eventually agreed [to meet].
In person, Ford won over the filmmaker with his enthusiasm and commitment tonotbeing Harrison Ford for this role.
He didnt want to be the lead.
He wanted to serve the story.
He was so confident that he could do it, so we agreed right there basically.
I guess the fact that I paid for lunch is what finally did it, Ford says.
Ford then threw himself into researching Rickeys life.
His diligence paid off.
(They even filled in the famous scar on his chin!)
The physical transformation was complete, and Fords voice had won over Helgeland long ago.
But putting together a convincing performance was an entirely different matter.
Ill be dead honest, I was really nervous, admits Helgeland.
I knew then that it was going to all work.
He had it down.
Harrison Ford seems to have reinvented himself as an actor, wrote EWs Owen Gleiberman.
He had invented the minor league scouting system.
He had won the World Series with the Cardinals two times in the 1930s.
