In the last decade, Rian Johnson has been one of the fastest rising directors working in Hollywood. A film graduate from the University of Southern California, Johnson directed several short films before breaking into features with Brick (2005). Since then, he has directed several notable projects including Looper (2012), Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), and most recently, Knives Out (2019).
Despite The Last Jedi performing the strongest at the box office, Knives Out garnered him the most personal acclaim with an Academy Award nomination for writing. A sequel has been recently greenlit with Daniel Craig (Casino Royale) expected to return. While the wait begins for the anticipated sequel, let’s take a look at ten fun facts about Johnson’s impressive filmography.
Porgs Are Based On Real-Life Birds
One of the more discussed creations from The Last Jedi, porgs are sea-dwelling birds on the planet Ahch-To. They have a heavy presence in the film’s first act and interact with Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo). Despite Star Wars’ history with cute creatures, porgs weren’t part of the original plan.
The Ahch-To scenes were filmed at Skellig Michael island in Ireland, which hosts native birds called puffins. Since the birds were abundant and difficult to rid, Johnson and his team decided to digitally cover them with CGI resulting in the adorable porgs.
The Director’s Actors Are Allowed To Improvise Dialogue
Some directors-writers treat their scripts like unchangeable law, but not Johnson. Throughout his career, he has been historically known to allow changes to his dialogue from actors. The most drastic example is when he allowed Carrie Fisher (Star Wars) to work on The Last Jedi script.
The known script doctor added memorable lines like “I’ve changed my hair” to the film. Other changes in Johnson’s films are for practical reasons. In murder mystery Knives Out, the director allowed Chris Evans (Avengers: Endgame) to say “Eat s—” instead of “F— you” so the film could have a PG-13 rating.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Looper Makeup Took Hours
In Johnson’s time-traveling flick Looper, hitman Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) meets his older self from the future. Older Joe, played by Bruce Willis (Die Hard), has a striking resemblance to his younger counterpart. The similarity, and Gordon-Levitt’s unrecognizable face, was due to the prep work for the role.
Speaking to MTV News, Looper makeup artist Kazu Tsuji said the actor’s makeup took around three hours every day. Because he had to stay awake to move his head, Gordon-Levitt listened to music and podcasts to kill time. He also studied Willis’ speech patterns and other audio traits to sound like him.
Shane Carruth Was Briefly Involved With Looper
Known for directing and writing one of the most complex time travel films in Primer (2004), Shane Carruth was briefly involved with Looper. In early 2011, there was a photograph of Carruth on the set of the film. Johnson said he would work on the special effects for some of the time travel sequences.
In a 2012 Reddit Q&A promoting the film, Johnson said Carruth ended up giving “some notes on the script but wasn’t involved beyond that.” The director cited not wanting to interfere with Carruth’s specific vision. Considering the critical acclaim Looper received, maybe it was for the best.
Rachel Weisz Learned Many Skills For The Brothers Bloom
There’s little doubt Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz (The Favourite) is a talented actor, but she got to show other skills in Johnson’s caper film, The Brothers Bloom (2008). When Penelope (Weisz) introduces herself to Bloom (Adrien Brody), she tells him, “I collect hobbies” before a montage is shown.
The silly sequence features Weisz playing instruments, skateboarding, break-dancing, and even rapping. The actor told New York Magazine she had two weeks to learn how to do everything. Weisz noted she had help with the rapping since Brody is a hip-hop fan.
Knives Out’s Last Shot Was An Accident
Sometimes accidents can be good. In the last shot of Knives Out, Marta (Ana de Armas) sips on a mug that says, “my house, my rules, my coffee” after being declared the new owner of the Thrombey mansion and being vindicated of murder. According to Johnson, the funny shot was “a happy accident.”
Speaking to the Empire Podcast, the director revealed the original plan was to start the film with a scene that included the goofy mug and end it with Marta sipping tea victorious. It wasn’t until actual filming that Johnson had the idea of featuring the mug in the final shot as a fun callback to the opening scene.
Cowboy Bebop Has Been A Major Influence
Premiering in 1998, Cowboy Bebop has been one of the most influential anime since. Mixing gangster and noir with sci-fi elements, the anime has been a benchmark for others to experiment outside the medium. Its influence has rubbed off on Johnson, who has shown his love for it on several occasions.
In mystery film Brick, teenager Brendan (Gordon-Levitt) has a similar walk, appearance, and personality with bounty hunter Spike Spiegel. Even the film’s visuals match the anime. Looper’s rundown sci-fi universe, which has things like noirish hitmen and experimental drugs, is similar to the anime as well.
The Last Jedi Originally Had More Sets And Was Longer
Star Wars films are typically ambitious affairs, but Johnson’s entry stands apart. In an interview with Hollywood Reporter, The Last Jedi production designer Rick Heinrichs said “the original script had about 160 sets in it,” which was double the amount expected. The production ended up with 125.
While doing press for the film, Johnson revealed to Collider the original cut was over three hours. The director said whole sequences were cut, but several of them can still be seen in the film’s home release. Despite the shorter edit, The Last Jedi holds the title for the longest Star Wars film at 152 minutes.
Frank Oz’s Knives Out Role Is A Rarity In His Career
Having a lengthy career with voice-acting and puppeteering work, Frank Oz (Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back) is most famously known for playing Jedi Master Yoda in the prequel and original Star Wars trilogies. Oz returned in The Last Jedi, which was a top-secret for several years before release.
But the director wasn’t done with Oz and asked him to appear in Knives Out as Alan, Harlan Thrombey’s (Christopher Plummer) lawyer. Since it wasn’t his usual work, the role is notable since his last live-action film appearance was as a prison warden in 1998’s Blues Brothers 2000.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt And Noah Segan Appear In Every Film
Some directors are known for having recurring actors in their films and Johnson is no different. Gordon-Levitt and Noah Segan had prominent roles in Brick. It was Johnson’s first collaboration with the two but certainly not his last. The pair next starred in Looper as fellow members of a crime syndicate.
While Gordon-Levitt did not lead any more of the director’s other films, he still appeared in cameo roles. Segan had similar small appearances but most recently played a supporting role in Knives Out. Whatever Johnson directs next, there’s a good chance the two will both be in it.
