Jude Law reveals why one of his biggest movie roles was a ‘bad move’

Jude Law has explained why one of his most famous roles was a ‘bad move’ for his career.

Jude, 51, has had an eviable career, earning an Academy Award nomination for The Talented Mr Ripley, and Cold Mountnain, and critical acclaim for Steven Spielberg’s A.I. Artificial Intelligence and Sam Mendes’ Road to Perdition.

However, in a recent interview, the actor admitted that there is one iconic role he now looks back on as a ‘bad move’.

Speaking to GQ, the actor revealed that Alfie might not have been the best career move after earning an Academy Award nomination for another role.

‘I was in a really strong position [at that time] because I’d just had another [Oscar] nomination on the back of Cold Mountain, he said.

‘And for Alfie to be the film I chose to do quite soon after that, I think was a bad move.’

He explained that he was disappointed after watching an early screening as he imagined something grittier: ‘I just felt it hadn’t elevated [the material] and felt a little light, a little too cheesy.’

The actor also added that he ‘kicked himself’ after leaning into his typecast.

‘I think it was made for too much money, and I was probably paid too much money, which I underestimated at the time. I kicked myself that I’d done something that was leaning into the heartthrob and the charismatic lead and it hadn’t worked,’ he said.

He was then asked if his confidence was knocked. ‘Yes, I think it probably did,’ he said. ‘Everyone has hits, everyone has flops. But yes, I think it did. It also made me aware that, when you are fresh out of the gate, everyone is intrigued and everyone wants a piece of you.

‘And then as soon as you have a couple of misfires, their attention goes elsewhere. And so there’s a part of you also thinking, “Oh, OK, how do I get that attention back?”‘

Alfie was released in 2004 as a remake of Michael Caine’s 1996 film of the same name about a ‘heat-seeking bachelor’.

The movie was a box office flop, making a worldwide total of $35,150,546 (£27.6 million) on a $60 million (£47.2 million) budget.

Rotten Tomatoes’ critics consensus reads: ‘This unnecessary remake wants Alfie to have his cake and eat it, too, but a lack of sexual fizz and a sour performance by Jude Law conspire to deliver audiences a romantic comedy that isn’t romantic or funny.’

In the same interview, Jude also revealed that he nearly turned down one of his most famous roles, Dickie Greenleaf in The Talented Mr Ripley.

The actor explained he didn’t want to be typecast as the ‘charming handsome man’, but was eventually convinced to take the role on.

‘I mistook Dickie as just a good-looking guy on a boat, and of course what [Minghella] saw were all these layers of complexity: a guy on the run; a guy who’s spoiled; a guy who’s sort of pretending to be something he’s not really. He slowly encouraged me to make that jump,’ he said.

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