Jeff Daniels’ recently released series, A Man in Full, has been taking the world by storm. As though food for critics, its reviews have been nothing but stellar. Audiences have not been able to get enough of the series, and this is not surprising, considering its cast and its creators. However, more aspects make up a show, and the most important is the story.
The show’s premise is truly spectacular, following the classic rich-turned-poor trope, but taking an approach so unique that one cannot stop watching. One of the main reasons for its appeal was the character of Charlie Croker. As his name suggested, the man was a crook, dishonesty being a living-breathing entity in his life, until all was taken from him as payment.
Recently, Daniels gave an interview in which he talked about how he channeled the character’s rather obtuse traits, and it seemed to be much closer for him than fans would expect.
Charlie Croker and Jeff Daniels: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Recently, Jeff Daniels gave an interview with ScreenRant where he went into great detail about A Man in Full. When asked how difficult it was for him to play the character of Charlie Croker, his answer was quite surprising. The actor revealed that playing a character as dark and morally complex as the real estate mogul was quite easy for him.
“Frighteningly easy. [Chuckles] Tom Wolfe wrote a great book back in the late ’90s, and David E. Kelly adapted it, and those two people did a lot of the work for me. It’s complex, but it’s all there,”
Talking about how much work was put into making the character as complex as he is, Daniels mentioned that it was hard for the actor to avoid the similarities between him and the one he was pretending to be.
The complexities of his character made it difficult to turn him into a two-dimensional figure.
A Man in Full—A Succession?
Balance is very important when it comes to creating cinema. If a character is unlikable, many projects will try to soften the blow by making it, or them, funny. It is difficult to turn off something hilarious, regardless of how insufferable the protagonists are. Many shows have taken such an approach, and one of the most recent ones has to be Succession.
With this in mind, it is difficult for a show about wealthy people to be released now and not be compared to the Jeremy Strong classic. In many of its reviews, critics have compared A Man in Full to being in the same category as the show that ruled 2023. Despite this, many have argued that the show has the ability to stand on its own and find an identity outside of Succession.
Daniels said,
“I love this kind of Shakespearean fall from being rich beyond any imagination, larger than life, the star of his own show. Everyone he meets is his audience, he’s just so full of himself, thus the title, and then we cut his knees out.” said Daniels, proving the show has an identity of its own.
Where the comedy series had a satirical approach to it, the Jeff Daniels series takes on a more serious theme, something that is equally appreciated.
Despite this, the show could still achieve the same level of fame considering how critically acclaimed and talked about it has become.
A Man in Full is available for streaming on Netflix.
