It’s an undeniable fact that the 2007 Hitman movie wasn’t very good. The movie made an admirable attempt to transport the mythos of unstoppable assassin Agent 47 to the silver screen. However, its poor pacing and even poorer script turned most fans and critics off from the get-go. As it turns out, actor Timothy Olyphant (who played Agent 47 in the movie) wasn’t a huge fan either. Indeed, Olyphant revealed in a recent interview that he only did the movie because he was desperate for cash.
Hitman Actor Explains How He Got The Role
Timothy Olyphant was recently interviewed by Rolling Stone about the upcoming Deadwood movie revival on HBO. One of Olyphant’s most iconic roles is Deadwood’s Sheriff Seth Bullock. Olyphant played Bullock throughout the entirety of Deadwood’s original three-season run back in the early 2000’s. However, Deadwood’s sudden cancellation in the middle of its third season put Olyphant in a tricky position.
As Olyphant explains in the interview, he had purchased a house shortly before news of the cancellation broke. Faced with Deadwood’s sudden end, Olyphant worried he might have to sell the house he just bought. However, he instead decided to take on a few quick movie roles he might otherwise have passed on. The first was as the villain in the Bruce Willis action sequel Live Free or Die Hard. The second was as Agent 47 in the Hitman movie.
To hear Olyphant tell it, he doesn’t sound like he enjoyed doing either movie. However, he’s also grateful for the life lessons he learned from having to do them in a pinch:
“You know what, though? Those experiences were equally valuable. Oddly enough, those kinds of experiences, perhaps arguably more valuable than these. You know? Find yourself bald in Bulgaria doing some pile of ****, that will get you up a little earlier in the morning and make you work a little harder.”
A more recent Hitman movie adaptation from 2015 was also met with unanimous scorn from critics and video game fans. Olyphant didn’t return for the 2015 film and was replaced by Rupert Friend.
Meanwhile, the most recent Hitman game, Io Interactive’s Hitman 2, is doing pretty well for itself. Hitman 2 is currently receiving new live service content as per its May content roadmap.