Christoph Waltz to Play Scary Paranoid Schizophrenic in "Water for Elephants"

Christoph Waltz, the disarmingly evil Nazi "Jew Hunter" Col. Hans Landa in Quentin Tarantino's World War II-set fairy tale, Inglourious Basterds delivers an unforgettable performance as one of the great villains of our time, a man who is at once thoroughly likable and unapologetically ruthless. The Oscar and a BAFTA nominee has joined Francis Lawrence’s Water For Elephants. He’ll be working alongside Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson in the adaptation of Sara Gruen’s novel.

The story follows a rundown circus during the Depression era, with Pattinson playing a veterinary student who falls in love with the circus' star performer (Witherspoon), wife of a paranoid schizophrenic animal trailer.

Waltz plays the scary paranoid schizophrenic. It’s a reportedly violent role, with the character treating his creatures with as much savagery as he treats his wife.

Previously, Sean Penn had been linked to the role but we're glad Waltz will be sinking his teeth into the part, especially after his great turn in Basterds

PLOT
Orphaned and penniless at the height of the Depression, Jacob Jankowski escapes everything he knows by jumping on a passing train—and inadvertently runs away with the circus. So begins Water for Elephants, Sara Gruen’s darkly beautiful tale about the characters who inhabit the less-than-greatest show on earth.

Jacob finds a place tending the circus animals, including a seemingly untrainable elephant named Rosie. He also comes to know Marlena, the star of the equestrian act—and wife of August, a charismatic but cruel animal trainer. Caught between his love for Marlena and his need to belong in the crazy family of travelling performers, Jacob is freed only by a murderous secret that will bring the big top down.

We hope Waltz isn't getting type cast already. Perhaps he will play the lead in a singing, dancing, romcom musical one day. Bingo!

* * *

Source: IMDB.com