Javier Bardem explains why he took Max Cady role in Cape Fear
Javier Bardem told NPR he first resisted Apple TV’s Cape Fear before deciding Martin Scorsese’s return made the role worth taking.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
3 min read
Javier Bardem says Javier Bardem Cape Fear almost did not happen: he was wary of taking on Max Cady before Apple TV’s series reached its season finale Friday. In an interview with NPR’s Morning Edition, Bardem said Martin Scorsese’s role as an executive producer helped persuade him to play a character already made famous on screen.
Bardem told NPR host Leila Fadel that he initially hesitated because of the weight attached to Max Cady. The role had previously been played by Robert Mitchum and Robert De Niro, and Bardem said he did not want to repeat what earlier actors had done.
According to NPR, the Apple TV version casts Bardem as Cady, a former prisoner convicted of killing his pregnant wife. The character targets the attorneys he holds responsible for his time behind bars.
Why did Javier Bardem take the Max Cady role?
Bardem told NPR he reconsidered after recognizing that more than three decades had passed since Scorsese’s 1991 remake and that Scorsese was involved again as an executive producer. Bardem recalled deciding, with a laugh, that he had to do it.
His approach, he said, was to build a new version of Cady instead of copying the performances that came before. Bardem told NPR he looked for the character’s motives and emotional logic, describing Cady as someone who has lost everything and therefore does not fear consequences.
Bardem said that lack of fear gives Cady patience in pursuing revenge. He also told NPR that villains appeal to him because they can carry contradictions and complexity that are harder to find in more conventional heroic parts.
Rather than condemning the character from the outside, Bardem said his work was to make Cady understandable as a person. In his view, playing a villain requires finding the human drive beneath the violence and menace, even when the character’s actions remain destructive.
What is Apple TV’s Cape Fear about?
Cape Fear is Apple TV’s series built around Max Cady and the lawyers he blames for his imprisonment, according to NPR. The season finale is set to stream Friday on Apple TV.
The project also connects Bardem to one of film’s best-known villain roles. NPR reported that Bardem was conscious of the character’s history, especially because Mitchum and De Niro had already left strong marks on the part.
The NPR interview also covered Bardem’s public support for Palestinian rights. Bardem said he expected criticism for speaking out and had heard that some work may not have gone ahead because of his views.
Bardem told NPR that working in Spain gives him room to continue expressing those views because he does not depend only on American film projects. He also said more people have thanked and encouraged him because they feel represented by what he has said.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.