Should an American actor
have been cast to play
Hank Williams?
By Soraya Nadia McDonald
The Washington Post
You probably know Tom Hiddleston as the swaggering, throaty-voiced supervillain Loki from the “Thor” and “Avenger” movies. He revels in Loki’s delicious evilness, but he’ll be slowing down soon to play Hank Williams in the upcoming biopic “I Saw the Light.”
There is a resemblance, not that it matters that much. Part of the magic of show business is that it can take Daniel Radcliffe and make you believe he’s a younger version of Jon Hamm.
Not everyone agrees with the choice of Hiddleston as Williams. “As high as I am on Tom Hiddleston, the idea of him playing all-American country music icon Hank Williams gives me pause,” said critic Anne Thompson at Thompson on Hollywood. “Somehow this role should go to an American actor.”
Thompson cited Hiddleston’s credentials, labeling him a “gifted” actor and singer. “Hank Williams will be an exciting challenge for him,” Thompson wrote. “It just feels….wrong.”
Williams was the country hitmaker responsible for “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” “Hey Good Lookin’” and “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry.” He became addicted to alcohol and prescription painkillers after suffering a hunting accident and died at 29 from heart failure.
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