Though Josh Brolin was already quite famous before for his compelling acting and captivating performances, playing Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe more or less upped his game in the industry. So much so that he even got to play Cable, the supervillain in another one of Marvel’s movies, Deadpool 2 (2018).
Yet while he absolutely nailed his performance while portraying the Mad Titan on-screen, Brolin almost wouldn’t have taken up the role had his one condition not been satisfied. And though his condition is a bit unsettling, it makes his character as well as his portrayal all the more special and unique in the franchise.
Josh Brolin’s One Condition Before Accepting The Role Of Thanos In MCU
Following his splendid performance as two of the most lethal supervillains in two of the most successful movie series from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Josh Brolin has become even more commendable than ever before. But while his portrayal of Thanos is widely loved, he almost didn’t play the character.
Appearing on the Team Deakins podcast, The Goonies star shared his one reason for accepting the role of the Mad Titan. And it wasn’t money.
“I had turned down quite a bit of [comic book movies]. Again, people are like ‘money.’ But when I said yes to [Avengers] it was a small thing. It was basically a cameo, so there was not a lot of money involved. So that wasn’t the reason.”
Instead, the main reason was that he didn’t want to be a villain who fought against only one Avenger – the fact that it was all the Avengers against him was what made him want to take on the role. Continuing, he shared:
“But when they came to me they gave me a big bible. I loved that it was all [of them]. If it had been one of the Avengers — and I probably shouldn’t say this but I’m just gonna say it — I probably wouldn’t have done it. But the fact that it was all the Avengers against this one guy. I liked that aspect of it.”
Thus, his one condition was respected by Marvel, and Josh Brolin was happily given the part of the CGI purple supervillain, performing as which he left absolutely no stone unturned.
Josh Brolin Only Accepted Thanos’ Role For A Brief Cameo
During another interview with ACE Universe, Josh Brolin discussed in detail how he had initially signed up for a small cameo in Avengers (2012). Little did he know that his role would grow up big enough to wipe out half the planet in a single snap.
“When I said yes to Thanos, you know, they’d given me a big Bible and really kind of talked me up. But it wasn’t for a massive, massive part in two final films of a 10-year span. It was meant more as a cameo,” Brolin said. “So it was never the size of the role that was like ‘Oh I want to do that because it’s going to push me further up into that fame or stardom or whatever.’ It was like ‘What’s the role?’ ‘The role is not one of the Avengers, it’s the nemesis to all the Avengers.’”
Although Thanos still remains one of the deadliest supervillains in Marvel and is incredibly hated by fans to an immeasurable extent, fans still love Josh Brolin for his exceptionally extraordinary and in-depth-to-the-core portrayal of the character.
Source: Team Deakins podcast | ACE Universe
