Twister Director Reflects on Working With Philip Seymour Hoffman

Twister director Jan de Bont recently recalled working with the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, who appeared in the classic 1996 disaster thriller.

Speaking to ComingSoon, de Bont was asked about working with Hoffman, who appeared in Twister as Dusty Davies, a storm chaser. The director recalled that he was “so real” in his acting, and could make anything work no matter what he was tasked with.

“He absolutely shines and he’s one of the best things in the movie, I think,” said de Bont. “Because he’s so real. So this sloppiness, the way he glorifies it almost, as sloppiness [and] the way he communicates with the other team members, he makes everything like a little bit of a spectacle, but in a fun way. He can make a theme work even though there was not much into it. He can make it work for you, and he can make it really special and unique, and it’s so fantastic.”

Hoffman was the last actor de Bont hired

The director went on to reveal that Hoffman was the last actor he hired for the film, and he arrived to his audition in “really sloppy clothing” that convinced de Bont to cast him.

“[Philip Seymour Hoffman] was the last actor I hired,” de Bont said. “He was dressed in really sloppy clothing when he came in the room, and [with] wild hair, I said, “That’s it. He’s it.” There’s no second, no number [two]. That was it. That was no other choice I wanted. This was him. He totally so filled all those little parts, and he brought some lightness to the movie, and that’s really hard to do in a serious situation to bring some lightness to it. He was just so perfectly suited for that. It’s really, I think, is great in the movie.”

Hoffman’s role in Twister was one of his earliest, and just one year later, the legendary actor would find his breakout role in 1997’s Boogie Nights. After that, the actor would go on to have an incredible career in Hollywood prior to his passing in 2014. Throughout his career, Hoffman won a Best Actor Oscar, and was nominated for Best Supporting Actor three times.