Originally published January 13, 2017. Updated April 15, 2018.
Over the past few weeks, La La Land has become a force to be reckoned with. Between its seven Golden Globe wins (and a slew of other accolades) and strong numbers at the box office, the film’s director, Damien Chazelle, has truly outdone himself, a seemingly impossible task seeing as how his previous film, Whiplash, set the bar very high. In fact, if there’s been one constant between the two films, besides Chazelle’s adeptness in crafting unforgettable movies, it’s actor J.K. Simmons.
Simmons earned an Oscar for his role as jazz instructor Terence Fletcher in Whiplash and, while he most likely won’t be taking home another one in February, had a smaller role in La La Land as a restaurant owner named Bill. According to THR, Simmons signed on to the project before the film’s leads, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, were attached and had his choice of roles.
The actor shared, “During the Whiplash shoot, [Chazelle] sent me the script and said, ‘There’s really not much of a part for you. I’d love for you to do one of these two little parts. Let me know which one.’ I picked the guy who hates jazz [over playing Emma’s father].”
SEE ALSO: Read our reviews of La La Land here, here and here
Apparently, viewers could wind up seeing more of Simmons’ Bill when the film hits Blu-ray and DVD, as the actor claims that he “improvised like crazy” with Gosling after Chazelle gave them the go-ahead to do so. “There’s a lot of comedy gold,” he said.
