Anyone who was lucky enough to watch The Chicago Code's lone season on FOX was witness to the powerful and absorbing debut of Jason Clarke in America.
Early trailers for the show had him tough guying around, but his no name face labeled him to me as the "guy who looks like a serious Matthew Perry." So much so I thought for at least two days that Perry was going dramatic.
It wasn't the premise of the show that drew me in. I couldn't care less about Chicago cops, (know that because I did, Chicago PD would have some kind of appeal) and in fact, I find procedurals to be a dreary affair. It also wasn't the stars. Clarke was unheard of. I'm not a lesbian nor was I nearing my 40s so Jennifer Beals hadn't the slightest draw.
No, the real pull came from a writer. Firefly and Wonderfalls' Tim Minear. When your name features on Firefly, you get a second look.
(Following this show, there seems to be a trend where unheralded Fox shows are more likely to be hidden gems than shows on other networks.)
Anyway, the show was killer. The full run favored serialized plot over procedural, it was stylized, brutally realistic and filled with quirky characters and a gripping plot. It had some negatives (needless romantic plot twists and an unbearable actor here and there) but they were nothing compared with the positives. You can't overlook a show that kills characters with no mercy in way Game Of Thrones would go on to popularize. And that Billy Corrigan theme song was perfectly moody and intense.
Back to Clarke. His Jarek Wysocki stole the show from the get go. Tough, cocky, and abrasive yet on the path of justice to clean up his city. It was astonishing and the show, while canceled after a phenomenal season due to lack of audience, spawned someone who is now on the cusp of stardom.
While he has been finding steady roles since Code, his stand out supporting roles pump energy into ensembles that have benefitted a few key films.
He roared at terrorists alongside Jessica Chastain in the acclaimed Zero Dark Thirty.
He popped up in Lawless (as the non Shia Labeouf, non Tom Hardy Bondurant brother) and The Great Gatsby as an angry husband.
My personal favorite is a film that isn't so fondly perceived. I have a bit of a soft spot for ruthlessness and his turn as the villainous Stenz in the laughably plotted White House Down carried that movie into being rather captivating (while he was on screen at any rate).
All that brings us to now. Clarke, a stealthy Australian native who masterfully hides his accent, is the human anchor in Dawn of The Planet of The Apes. A seemingly out of nowhere choice if you're not familiar with his trajectory.
Sure Andy Serkis deserves all the praise for this film but that's a different issue What audiences want is a human lead and Clarke takes over for an über celeb in James Franco.
While Dawn features capable and powerful turns by Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Kirk Acevado, and every mo-capped Ape (hot damn if Toby Kebbell isn't the next Jason Clarke), this film was about Caesar and Malcolm. Serkis and Clarke. A no name duo that everyone should know the names of.
(Serkis and Kebbell, as I'm doing with Clarke, deserve their own breakdown of praise and prediction.)
Clarke is next portaying another more high profiled saivor of humanity, John Connor, in the upcoming rebootish Terminator film.
Even if regular moviegoers fail to recognize him, at least Hollywood has given him their much deserved trust.
