Celebrating Willem Dafoe: A Quiz on His Iconic Films

Willem Dafoe, a prominent figure in cinema for over five decades, is celebrating his 71st birthday today. To mark this occasion, we present a quiz featuring nine films that showcase his remarkable career.

Throughout his extensive career, Dafoe has worked with a remarkable array of directors, including the likes of Martin Scorsese, William Friedkin, David Lynch, Oliver Stone, David Cronenberg, and Wim Wenders. Some of these directors have established long-term collaborations with him, leading to multiple film projects.

One notable partnership is with Paul Schrader, the acclaimed screenwriter of Taxi Driver, with whom Dafoe has collaborated on seven occasions. Robert Eggers is another director who has frequently worked with Dafoe; after The Lighthouse, The Northman, and Nosferatu, they are set to reunite next year for a project titled Werwulf. Additionally, Wes Anderson has teamed up with Dafoe five times, with their latest collaboration being The Phoenician Scheme. Before diving into the quiz, we share some behind-the-scenes insights about this film.

DID YOU KNOW?

A Rising Star Hundreds of candidates from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada auditioned for the role of Liesl. Wes Anderson was particularly drawn to Mia Threapleton for her "blend of stoicism and lightness". Threapleton, who has appeared in the series The Buccaneers, is also the daughter of actress Kate Winslet.

Genuine Masterpieces The artworks featured in Zsa-zsa are authentic masterpieces! The production team secured a Renoir that once belonged to Greta Garbo from the Nahmad collection, a Magritte from the Pietzsch collection, and several paintings loaned by the Hamburger Kunsthalle. The collection also includes a variety of surrealist and abstract expressionist works, photographs, and even a 14th-century wooden sculpture.

A New Cinematographer After a long-standing collaboration with Robert D. Yeoman, Wes Anderson worked with a new cinematographer, Bruno Delbonnel, on The Phoenician Scheme. Although the two had previously teamed up on advertisements, this marked their first collaboration on a feature film.