Why Morgan Freeman Avoids Playing This One Type of Role
With a career spanning decades and roles ranging from God to a chauffeur, Morgan Freeman has done it all. Yet, there's one specific kind of character he finds incredibly difficult to portray, a challenge he's only taken on twice. Discover the intense process behind his most demanding performances.
Portraying another person's life is often cited as an actor's greatest test, a trial of emotional endurance. For a man who has famously played the Almighty himself, Morgan Freeman is certainly familiar with monumental roles. As one of Hollywood's most esteemed and prolific veterans, he shows no indication of taking a break. Now in his 80s, Freeman continues to actively pursue new projects, still holding onto a few career goals he has yet to achieve, such as sharing the screen with Meryl Streep or taking the stage to host Saturday Night Live.
A Shift in Perspective
There was a time when playing the legendary lawman Bass Reeves was high on his list of aspirations, a goal that time eventually placed out of reach. It's not hard to picture Freeman brilliantly capturing the essence of such a figure in a biopic. However, his approach to acting has evolved over the years. He now leans away from the intense strain that comes with embodying real-life individuals, preferring characters that don't carry the same heavy emotional weight.
The Mandela Challenge
Freeman understands the unique pressures of biographical roles better than most, despite having tackled them sparingly. His portrayal of Nelson Mandela in the 2009 film Invictus stands as a prime example of this daunting task. The role felt pre-ordained for Freeman, especially after Mandela himself mentioned in a 1992 autobiography that he would want the actor to play him. Yet, even this incredible endorsement didn't entirely calm the anxieties associated with the part.
The actor found it difficult to connect with a subject who wasn't physically present. “I don’t play living people—I’ve only done it twice now,” Freeman shared with The Conquerer. He drew a sharp contrast between his work on Invictus and his role in Lean on Me. “With Lean on Me, the real Joe was there every day, and that made it easier, because if you’re going to play a living person, it helps to hold hands, literally. You get a sense of their energy, whether it’s high or low or if this person is calm or humming with anxiety.”
Finding a Personal Connection
To bridge that gap, Freeman immersed himself in countless hours of footage, studying everything from public speeches to candid, everyday moments. Through this deep dive, he picked up on subtle details that many people, even those close to Mandela, might have missed. He observed, for instance, that Mandela rarely used his left hand. The reason was a mystery, but the discovery was a breakthrough.
This small mannerism became a powerful point of connection for Freeman, who had a similar experience. “I was sort of relieved, because I can’t use mine well either, since my car accident last year,” he reflected. “There’s no reason to. You don’t act like there’s something wrong with the hand; you just don’t use it.” This shared physical trait helped him build a unique bond with the man he was portraying.
The significance of this role is undeniable, casting a long shadow over many of his other projects. It's almost as if Freeman was subconsciously studying Mandela for years, preparing for a part he didn't yet know was his destiny to play on the big screen.