When you talk about ‘hitmen’ in films, we all have a rough idea in our head of what people mean.
You’re probably either picturing a creepy Agent 47 bald man in a suit, or you’re picturing Travolta and Samuel L Jackson in Pulp Fiction.
Netflix’s newest hit film, however, is based on a real life man but with a twist.
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He never actually killed anyone.
The film, Hit Man, is partially based on the life of Gary Johnson, a real life guy who pretended to be a hitman to put away people trying to hire one.
Starring Glen Powell, it released in 2023 to rave reviews, receiving a 98 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and arguably more important – a glowing review from the UNILAD team.
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In an exclusive interview with director Richard Linklater though, we asked about Gary Johnson – and what it was like coming across the remarkable story of his life.
When we asked him the wildest thing he came across in his research, the answer was surprising.
He exclusively told UNILAD: “As far as this story goes, it was really just as the dual life of a teacher and that kind of narrowed it down.”
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In the film, and in real life – Gary Johnson’s day job is that of a teacher, whilst he spends his spare time moonlighting for the police pretending to be a hit man.
As in the film, the real-life Gary Johnson was a master of disguises, researching and tailoring a different ‘hit man’ to each target.
Whilst Glen Powell now feels like the obvious choice to play the role having seen the film, Linklater and Powell actually came across an article about Gary many years apart – despite co-writing the film together.
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Richard said: “We both came across it... 19 years apart, maybe 20? I read it in 2001 when Glenn was probably still in junior high.
“I thought about it then like what a weird character. I called up Skip [Hollandsworth], the writer, and talked about it had a couple of meetings over the years. Yeah. It's such an interesting world.
“So, Glenn calls me during the pandemic and says, ‘Hey, I read this story’. I'm like, ‘Yeah, Glenn I read that’.”
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The article by Skip Hollandsworth refers to Gary Johnson as the ‘Lawrence Olivier’ of fake police hit men, which inspired the character you see in Powell and Linklaters new film.
The film has been a hit, dropping just today, June 7, on Netflix, with the 98% on Rotten Tomatoes joined by glowing reviews from fans.
One posted on X (formerly known as Twitter): “Just saw Richard Linklater’s Hit Man the way it SHOULD be seen — on the big screen — and, MAN, does it HIT.
"It’s a perfect vehicle for Glen Powell. He’s a f**king movie star. It just may be the best movie of 2024. It’s such a crime you’ll have to stream it.”
It may hit better on a big screen but believe me, take any opportunity you get to watch it.
Topics: Netflix, Film and TV
Michael Slavin