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Adrien Brody: Oscar-winner. Remember when that happened? It’s OK if you don’t. It was, after all, for The Pianist: a very good, if somewhat unmemorable, film about the Holocaust that perhaps received more controversy on Oscar night in March 2003 when Roman Polanski won Best Director for the film — an accolade many thought he didn’t deserve considering he was convicted for raping a teenager in 1978 and then fled the country to avoid imprisonment. Had our current outrage-based blog economy been at its current peak twelve years ago, there may have been an onslaught of think-pieces about a moment that nearly overshadowed Brody’s Best Actor win: when he planted a excited kiss onto the woman who presented him with his Oscar, Halle Berry.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4kzceTpmAY]

I mean, the response to when John Travolta touched Idina Menzel’s face? We would have collectively lost our shit on the Internet back in 2003 if Twitter were around.

Was the early aughts’ lack of social justice blogging responsible for Adrien Brody’s weird post-Pianist win? Well, I admit that might be a stretch. But one thing is for sure: Adrien Brody definitely has had a weird twelve years for a guy who won an Oscar for a respected and acclaimed Holocaust drama.

The New York City-born and bred actor, who studied at the famed LaGuardia High School for Performing Arts (the same high school that inspired Fame), had a early moderate success in indie films in the late ’90s before he was cast in this Oscar-winning break-out role (he remains the youngest actor to win Best Actor). Most notably, he had supporting roles in Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line, Spike Lee’s Summer of Sam, and Barry Levinson’s Liberty Heights. Winning an Oscar no doubt boosted his star power, which landed him roles in M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village, Peter Jackson’s remake of King Kong, and the neo-noir Hollywoodland (in which he starred alongside Ben Affleck and Diane Lane as the LA private eye who investigates the death of Superman star George Reeves). While The Village and King Kong were bonafide blockbusters, Hollywoodland was a commercial flop, and Brody’s performance was overshadowed by those of his co-stars.

In 2007, Brody co-starred in Wes Anderson’s The Darjeeling Limited in what would be the first of three collaborations with the beloved director (he’d provide a voice in the animated Fantastic Mr. Fox and have a supporting role in last year’s The Grand Budapest Hotel). He also co-starred in The Brothers Bloom, Rian Johnson’s twee caper which was another box-office disappointment. And then Brody lost out two major roles that could have revitalized his career: The Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight (famously going to Heath Ledger) and Spock in J. J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot.

Other than a small role as Salvador Dalí in Woody Allen’s fantasy comedy, Midnight in Paris, and in The Grand Budapest Hotel, Brody has turned up in an odd assortment of films. There were the sci-fi thrillers Splice and Predators, the independent feature Detachment, and, perhaps most bizarrely, InAPPropriate Comedy — a sketch comedy anthology film co-starring another fallen marquee idol, Lindsay Lohan, and directed by none other than Vince Offer (otherwise known as The ShamWow Guy).

Judging from Brody’s most successful films since he won the Oscar for The Pianist in 2003, it’s clear to see what his strengths are. It’s not, despite his best efforts, as an action hero. He doesn’t have the movie star looks, which is fine — he’s much more interesting to look at than your average movie star, to put it bluntly. His most entertaining work have been in small, quirky independent features: Wes Anderson’s oeuvre is a perfect fit for the actor, but he’s also suited for fare like The Brothers Bloom, which has achieved a minor cult following despite not being a box-office smash, and the dark and thoughtful Detachment, in which Brody plays a substitute teacher in a troubled school. That film, helmed by American History X director Tony Kaye, boasts an impressive ensemble cast that includes Marcia Gay Harden, Christina Hendricks, Bryan Cranston, Lucy Liu, and James Caan, and is the kind of polarizing film that might just build a small audience organically through streaming platforms years after its limited release three years ago.

I don’t think Brody’s career is lost quite yet, and I’d be eager to see him take on more interesting roles and rebuild his brand as a risk-taker rather — being an indie player rather than a Hollywood icon.

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Photos: Everett Collection