It’s usually a noteworthy role when an actor inhabits a character that has an accent of any kind. Tom Hanks would adopt a strong Southern accent for Forrest Gump or a European accent for The Terminal. Al Pacino would illicit a ton of impressions as Tony Montana in Scarface. Even Sacha Baron Cohen gave people a reason to repeat his comedy ad nauseam with Borat. However, it’s pretty rare for an American actor to have roles back-to-back in a particular dialect for two projects that are unrelated. But that’s exactly how it worked out for Adam Driver. Although he’s had releases in between, Driver has had a couple of recent stand-out roles in succession where he would portray an Italian native and sported an accent with the films House of Gucci and Ferrari.
In the grand scheme of his career, it’s mere trivia or a footnote. However, Driver reveals that his promotional tour for Ferrari would prompt some press to point out his Italian roles. Deadline reports that the Kylo Ren actor appeared on the SmartLess podcast, where he told hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett about his navigating those inevitable questions. Driver explained, “So many people have been like, ‘How many Italians… ?’ I’m like, it’s just kind of worked out that way. But I’m like, you know, it’s Ridley and it’s Michael and they’re in my mind some of the best filmmakers. Who gives a s**t that it was two Italians back to back?”
Driver would also add, “I’m surprised how much it comes up. It’s like, ‘You have a thing,’ and I’m like, ‘It’s two! It’s two Italians!’ It’s just two. The press isn’t a place where you have a nuanced conversation. That seems like a hard idea. Like, ‘What is it with Italy?’ I mean, it’s less to do with Italy, although I like it. It’s more about Ridley Scott and Michael Mann and the projects themselves. Italy is not the first thing on my mind.”
The Ferrari actor is normally bluntly outspoken, as he encountered a heckler of sorts during a screening of Ferrari at the Camerimage Film Festival in Poland, where an audience member at the Q&A said, “What do you think about [the] crash scenes? That they looked pretty harsh, drastic and I must say cheesy for me. What do you think?” And Driver responded, “F*ck you, I don’t know. Next question.”