Jason Statham has little to complain about regarding his career. For close to three decades, he has starred in numerous high-grossing movies, establishing himself as one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors. Even though America has gifted him most of his success, he has remained proudly British, maintaining much of his accent even when the movies called for a slight tweak. Given his lack of desire to switch vocals, many screenwriters and directors tend to ensure that his characters have British origins.
Understandably, Statham was high up on the list for consideration when Peaky Blinders creator Stephen Knight was looking for someone to cast as the crime boss turned politician Tommy Shelby. Though the actor has never starred in a TV show, he seemed like the ideal frontman for a story that blended 1920s English history with life in the underworld.
After all, he had a big name. On top of that, he played semi-criminals in geezer-gangster Britflicks like Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. During the casting journey, series creator Steven Knight also considered Cillian Murphy, an actor who wasn’t quite A-list but had strong potential. Murphy would eventually win the ‘Battle of Birmingham,’ but he had to fire an extra cannonball to ensure victory.
Jason Statham Was Stephen Knight’s First Choice for Tommy Shelby
Speaking to Esquire, Stephen Knight revealed that he met both actors to see who looked more like an early 20th-century gangster and one person easily stood out.
”
I met them both in LA to talk about the role and opted for Jason. One of the reasons was because, physically in the room, Jason is Jason. Cillian, when you meet him, isn’t Tommy, obviously, but I was stupid enough not to understand that.”
The stage was almost set. For the next few years, Statham would have played one of the most intriguing characters on television. A character who steals a cache of government weapons and still manages to discuss gardening with Winston Churchill. A character who faces all kinds of threats, from a Jewish gangster who crucifies enemies and labels the act “biblical” to a revenge-minded Italian-American mobster, and still comes out on top. But, that didn’t happen.
Sensing that he might lose out on a life-changing role, Cillian Murphy chose not to adhere to the “Don’t call us… We’ll call you!” rule. He sent Knight a text later on with a simple message. “Remember, I’m an actor.” Such a move might have angered other showrunners and directors, but Knight realized right what he meant. As much as the up-and-coming actor didn’t look intimidating in person, he could easily transform himself into anyone, something that could be proved by looking at his past work.
Peaky Blinders Doesn’t Suit Jason Statham’s Persona
During Tommy’s wedding in Season 3, he gives his men one simple order:
“No f**king fighting!”
Such is the rule he also adheres to for most of the series. Except for a few occasions, like when he engages Luca Changretta in a Coyote and Roadrunner type of chase across the rough-and-tumble alleys of Birmingham, he carries himself as a man with an aversion to needless bloodshed. Most of his battles are won psychologically, and whenever he needs to, he uses his subordinates to do the dirty work. It’s the ideal way that a crime boss should behave. But would Statham have nailed this?
The Hollywood A-lister isn’t exactly known as a drama actor. He talks less and punches more. It’s what audiences have come to expect from him and definitely what they would have expected here. They might have felt frustrated about being forced to persevere for long periods without any notable action. Consequently, the show might have lost much of its fanbase along the way.
As Knight noted, Statham is physically intimidating, yet part of Tommy Shelby’s appeal lies in the fact that he is an easy person to underestimate. His enemies keep testing him because they aren’t frightened by him, and that’s something they always regret.
There’s no denying that Statham would have looked good in a suit and a bakerboy hat, but he is no Tommy Shelby. Like Tom Hardy, he might have been better off playing one of the villains or antiheroes in the show. It’s quite a shame that he was never cast in another role.
The Show’s Success Proves Knight Made the Right Choice
The casting decision for a lead actor can make or break a show, and the success of Peaky Blinders proves Cillian Murphy was the right choice. He delivered a potent, critically acclaimed turn as the crusty, incalcitrant criminal, making it hard to see any other person in the role. If Murphy learned one thing during the audition stage, it was how to turn underestimation into triumph. With the actor at the helm, the British crime drama became so popular that Netflix snapped up the rights to release it around the world and funded a sixth season as well as a finale film. Additionally, the show constantly received numerous accolades from all award organizations across the United Kingdom.
Like Murphy mentioned, he is “an actor,” (perhaps a slight dig at Statham’s one-dimensional) and that’s the reason he won an Oscar in his first lead role in a major Hollywood Picture (Oppenheimer). It’s worth noting that Statham has only ever been nominated for four awards in his career and two of those were Razzies. Statham could obviously play the lead of a gangster show if he wanted, but he is more suited for something that uses the template of an action-packed crime drama like Gangs of London, than Peaky Blinders, which is tailor-made for viewers who value dense, literate shows.
It would be interesting to see where Cillian Murphy’s career goes from here. The stars of many other popular crime dramas have seen their popularity fade after the finale, but Murphy appears to be headed in the opposite direction. His success with Oppenheimer proves we haven’t even seen the best of him. Hopefully, the good roles keep coming, but from here he might need to hire a better agent rather than rely on text messages.
Peaky Blinders
is available to stream in the US on Netflix.
