Jonathan Mendelsohn
Successful actor Owen Wilson‘s newest film Paint, which hits theaters this Friday, sees him donning a look similar to that of late painter Bob Ross. Paint follows Carl Nargle, a fictional painter who hosts a popular talk show on PBS called “Paint”. In the film, Carl’s livelihood as an artist is threatened when a younger artist is hired at the TV station as a second host of “Paint”. In real life, Bob Ross hosted the painting show The Joy of Painting on PBS from 1983 to 1994. Ross died from Lymphoma in 1995.
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A video showcases Wilson being transformed into Carl Nargle, who looks very similar to Ross. In the video, Wilson can be seen donning a curly wig and heavy makeup. Wilson reportedly grew his own beard for the role.
Owen Wilson’s Uncanny Resemblance of Bob Ross
Wilson explained how it felt to be in such heavy costume, saying, “I’ve looked somewhat the same in a lot of movies. It always seems nice when you see actors that really change and get to do stuff and to tap into that little kid feeling of make-believe, and so there was more of an element in this movie. For me, having such a different look helps you to feel not like yourself, and that can’t hurt as an actor.”
Wilson later added that he loved to get the reactions of people who know him while in full costume. Wilson said “The first few weeks, my favorite thing to do during lunch break was to FaceTime people. And of course there were the people, like my family to do, but then even somebody like my lawyer, somebody who wasn’t really expecting it. A financial advisor on a Zoom meeting to discuss things.”
Hair department head Kekepania Vasquez-Tamali’i said that the look “took a lot of work.” Brit Adams, the writer and director of Paint, spoke to people about Wilson’s dramatic transformation, saying, “Obviously, I looked at him a lot during that process. But when he actually stepped in front of the camera as Carl Nargle the cinematographer (my old friend/genius Patrick Cady) and we turned to each other and whispered, ‘Holy cow.'”
