MovieChat Forums > Narcos (2015) Discussion > Terrible casting of Murphy

Terrible casting of Murphy


I kept thinking maybe he was a child actor who hit the skids and the producers of the show knew him personally and were trying to give him a new lease on life, but no...turns out he's just a distracting, scene-ruining, terrible actor who's out of his depth. I have no other complaints about the show.

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At first I thought the same as you. But then I realised that almost every movie, tv-series and shows always cast actors that are charismatic and super talented and good-looking to the point where it actually gets distracting. By talent, I mean the actor always convey the appropriate facial expression.

But in reality it's not always like that. I'm sure that you've met people who are boring af, out of place etc. Conversations in real life aren't written by Aaron Sorkin and they don't include cool punch lines. Have you ever listened to a cringe worthy conversation? I have.

Keeping this in mind, it's actually nice to see a character that's not "a natural" and not captivating. There's nothing special about him and that's okey with me. He was just a side character anyway, Pablo was the focus.

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I don't know. I get what you mean, but it sounds like you're giving him a free pass to suck at his job.

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I think he did a good job maybe I'm the only one leave the poor guy alone!!!!!!

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Me too. I don't see what all the fuzz is about.

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Loosely translated, he can’t act. He’s a caricature of an American cop going to a foreign country, oblivious to local culture and language, bull in tea shop. It might have worked for Gene Hackman in the French Connection in 1972, but for Holbrook his portrayal is derivative or contrived or so it seems to me.
In all fairness there are quite a few twists and turns to the plot with a large ensemble of characters but I thought he had enough screen time for his performance. I just never warmed up to his character.

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I loved the casting of Murphy...

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Me too. I just don't see what some people don't like about Boyd Holbrook, He was great!

Dorothy Mantooth is a saint!

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does everyone died in the end and only hybrid baby reproduced? with whom?


Was the guy like that in real life?

I'm not defending being a caricature, but I am pointing out that some people actually are like that. I was in Army- in the infantry. Most guys there are regular people but some REALLY are like a caricature of 'Hoo-ah! Rangers all the way!' sort of thing you see on television.

And as an expatriate (for over half my life) I can readily attest to the fact that many United States citizens do go to other countries completely ignorant of that country, its customs, language, sensibilities etc. They're caricatures but they're also real.

I remember having this discussion on the Orphan Black board at some point because people were complaining about Tatiana Maslany's 'Hollywood stereotypical German accent'. The problem is, many German speakers actually do speak English this way.

Arnold Schwarzenegger readily springs to mind there.

I could easily accept that Murphy would be the way he was portrayed. I don't like the DEA. Or the (B)ATF(E). I think most of those guys are just wankers.

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Oh god, absolutely.
Awful casting

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My only problem with him was that he was not even close to able to grow a mustache as majestic as the one sported by the real Murphy.

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I like Boyd Holbrook, I saw him the first time in a small part in "Hatfields & McCoys" and had the feeling that he has the potential to become known.
But casting him as Murphy was an odd decision. Yes, he resembles him lookwise, but I had the feeling that he seemed way too young for this role. Yes, he's 35 but really looks 10 years younger, even with that mustache.
On top of that, something about his character felt off. It always felt like he didn't belong there, I never really got a feeling for this character. While Escobar seemed very layerd, Murphy always seemed to be... just there. I'm not really sure how to describe it. I wouldn't blame the actor at all, I think it just wasn't the right role for him. I think David Harbour would have been a way better option to play Murphy.

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In all criticisms on Holbrook people seem to forget he is one of the two actors that have to carry the show more than the rest of them, and I think he did an great job. Its all told from Murphys point of view and Holbrooks narration is the walls of the whole thing, though if he were so *beep* at that the show would be bunk.

I think many feel in reality he does not look the part. Yeah, he may have a fishy face but I think he bears quite a resemblance to the real Murphy who also did not look like a super tough macho cop.

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Surprised at the criticism of the actor playing Murphy---I've already seen him in two good films I liked (A Walk Among The Tombstones & Run All Night) playing the bad guy, so I thought it would be interesting to see him play one of the leads and play a good guy for a change. I mean, even in real life, every cop, male or female, dosen't look big, bold and macho all the time either. The character is what he is---basically the viewer's entry into this vicious world of crime,grime,murder, and drugs, and he's good at serving that purpose. I do like the fact that Murphy's an upfront, cut-the-bull**** and let's get straight-to-work kind of dude, and his frank, blunt,tell-it-like-it-is narration has been cracking me up so far, and it really brings you into the story. Plus Holbrook does have big creepy-looking eyes that are just right for playing bad guys, lol, and he's actually not that bad-looking either. Check him out in the other films I just mentioned,though---he's good in both of them.

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