Paul Giamatti has a formidable film and TV resume that runs with the best of them — but viewers of a certain age often have a soft spot for the classic kids’ flick that turned him blue.
Speaking with Marc Maron on Thursday’s “WTF” podcast, Giamatti reflected how “Big Fat Liar,” now pushing 22 years old, has today been seen by “generations of people” and crowned it as the weirdest project he’s ever done.
“I did this kid’s movie that’s probably the weirdest thing,” he said of the 2002 comedy costarring Frankie Muniz and Amanda Bynes. “I did this movie called ‘Big Fat Liar’ that kids — generations of people have seen this thing. And it’s just bizarre. I mean, it’s really strange.”
The actor, who most recently starred in Alexander Payne’s “The Holdovers,” played the slapstick comedy’s resident villain, Marty Wolf. A scheming Hollywood producer, Marty steals a paper from high schooler Jason (Muniz) and adapts it into a hit movie. When no one believes that Jason is the real mastermind behind the project, he and friend Kaylee (Bynes) seek revenge in the name of unveiling the truth.
Memorably, one act of revenge from the teens has Marty incidentally dying his skin blue and hair orange — slime ball goatee and all. Shawn Levy (“Free Guy”) directed the movie.
Giamatti previously discussed his work in “Big Fat Liar” in a recent video for GQ in which he broke down his most iconic roles.
“I really liked doing physical things. I didn’t play a lot of sports or anything. I guess I wasn’t very competitive, but I liked how theater and acting could offer me a way to do crazy physical stuff,” he said, adding that Levy invited him to do a lot of physical comedy as Marty. “I can’t do a lot of that stuff anymore because I’m getting old and I injured myself a lot.”
Giamatti went on to emphasize how fun it was to go “big” and “over the top” with Marty before looking back on the character’s unfortunate — but fitting — facial hair.
“I was always trying to grow facial hair for parts. I remember I did ‘Big Momma’s House’ and I grew this mustache for this cop and they made me shave it. They were really anti-facial hair,” Giamatti said. “I grew a beard for [‘Big Fat Liar’]. Shawn was like, ‘They want you to lose the beard,’ and I was like, ‘I can’t lose the f–king beard.’ And he really fought for me. What he got was the compromise of just that chin beard, which was great, actually, because it’s a stupid looking beard. I think it needed that because it actually looks funnier like that with the orange hair. And the costumes, the more over the top and ridiculous the costumes we could get, the better.”
Listen to Gimatti’s full “WTF” podcast episode here.
