History Creator / WillemDafoe

* ''Film/DeadForADollar'' (2022) as Joe Cribbins

* ChronicallyKilledActor: He dies ''a lot'' on-screen. His death scenes include [[spoiler:''Film/{{Platoon}}'', ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'', ''Film/Speed2CruiseControl'', ''Film/{{eXistenZ}}'', ''Film/ShadowOfTheVampire'', ''Film/SpiderMan1'', ''Film/OnceUponATimeInMexico'', ''VideoGame/BeyondTwoSouls'', ''Film/JohnWick'', and ''Film/TheGreatWall'']], among others. He also plays real-life film-maker Creator/PierPaoloPasolini in a 2014 biopic, a man famous for being brutally murdered. Ironic in that the character he plays in the ''Death Note'' movie, Ryuk, is a shinigami who kills people whose names are written in his Death Note. [[spoiler:And just as ironically, his Green Goblin was saved ''from'' death, and was transplanted into the MCU. Even more ironic: The overall plot of that movie was to spare Osborn from his death in ''Film/SpiderMan1'' and redeem him, and Spider-Man succeeds.]]

* SlasherSmile: Has a pretty good one, as shown in ''Film/Speed2CruiseControl'', to the point Music/WeirdAlYankovic and ''WebVideo/HonestTrailers'' made sure to point out the [[ComicBook/NormanOsborn Green Goblin]] looked scarier ''[[https://i1.wp.com/www.geekphilia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Spider-man-norman-osborn-willem-dafoe-goblin-smile.png without]]'' his mask.

* ''Film/{{Nightmare Alley|2021}}'' (2021) as Clem Hoately
* ''Film/TheNorthman'' (2022) as Heimir the Fool

** ''Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom'' (2022)

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wd_7.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[Film/SpiderMan1 You know, he's something of an actor himself.]]]]

* ChronicallyKilledActor: He dies ''a lot'' on-screen. His death scenes include [[spoiler:''Film/{{Platoon}}'', ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'', ''Film/Speed2CruiseControl'', ''Film/{{eXistenZ}}'', ''Film/ShadowOfTheVampire'', ''Film/SpiderMan1'', ''Film/OnceUponATimeInMexico'', ''VideoGame/BeyondTwoSouls'', ''Film/JohnWick'', and ''Film/TheGreatWall'']], among others. He also plays real-life film-maker Creator/PierPaoloPasolini in a 2014 biopic, a man famous for being brutally murdered. Ironic in that the character he plays in the ''Death Note'' movie, Ryuk, is a shinigami who kills people whose names are written in his Death Note. [[spoiler:And just as ironically, his Green Goblin [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome is now set]] to come BackFromTheDead after almost 20 years.]]

* ''Film/TheNorthman'' as Heimir the Fool

-->"[[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome Strong enough to log off from TV Tropes]], [[TVTropesWillRuinYourLife too weak to do it!]]

Also, [[Series/HowIMetYourMother his name sounds like a frog talking to a parrot.]]

* ''Film/FourForryFourLastDayOnEarth'' (2012) -- Cisco

* ''FourFortyFourLastDayOnEarth'' (2012) -- Cisco

* ChronicallyKilledActor: He dies ''a lot'' on-screen. His death scenes include ''Film/{{Platoon}}'', ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'', ''Film/Speed2CruiseControl'', ''Film/{{eXistenZ}}'', ''Film/ShadowOfTheVampire'', ''Film/SpiderMan1'', ''Film/OnceUponATimeInMexico'', ''VideoGame/BeyondTwoSouls'', ''Film/JohnWick'', ''Film/TheGreatWall'' among others. He also plays real-life film-maker Creator/PierPaoloPasolini in a 2014 biopic, a man famous for being brutally murdered. Ironic in that the character he plays in the ''Death Note'' movie, Ryuk, is a shinigami who kills people whose names are written in his Death Note. [[spoiler:And just as ironically, his Green Goblin [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome is now set]] to come BackFromTheDead after almost 20 years.]]

William James Dafoe (born July 22, 1955 in Appleton, Wisconsin), known professionally as "Willem" Dafoe, is an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward-nominated American film, stage, and voice actor, and a member of the experimental theater company The Wooster Group. He first got major attention in TheEighties, appearing in a number of controversial, cult, and edgy films, including ''To Live and Die in LA'' and ''Platoon''.

His first major lead role was UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} in ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'', where even though he had not yet been established for playing villains, his unusual features were highly remarked upon. After watching Dafoe's performance in the film, Creator/SergioLeone was heard to remark [[WTHCastingAgency "That's not the face of our Lord. It's the face of a psychopath."]] Critics, though, generally praised his performance, and Dafoe credits it for being his big break and for starting his interest in being a "director's actor", i.e. working with major auteurs and roles that interested him. It stands out in either case, as one of the very few films where he plays the main lead when the majority of his career after that has been as a character actor and supporting actor. He found himself typecast as villains, while occasionally doing character turns, and in other cases appearing in small scene-stealing cameos (such as as the gas station attendant in ''Film/{{existenz}}'').

* ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'' and the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse -- Norman Osborn / Green Goblin

* LargeHam: Make no mistake, Willem Dafoe is some premium New York ham. Examples include ''Film/SpiderMan1'' and his audiobook of ''Literature/TheLangoliers'', but ''Film/TheLighthouse'' is easily Dafoe's most impressive venture into insane porkiness. Ironically, the actor himself is a pescatarian. Going back to an early role, in ''Film/StreetsOfFire'' it's very clear that Dafoe knows ''exactly'' what type of movie he's in, and dials up the ham as much as the movie required.

His first major lead role was UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} in ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'', where even though he had not yet been established for playing villains, his unusual features were highly remarked upon. After watching Dafoe's performance in the film, Creator/SergioLeone was heard to remark [[WTHCastingAgency "That's not the face of our Lord. It's the face of a psychopath."]] Although critics generally praised his performance, and Dafoe credits it for being his big break and for starting his interest in being a "director's actor", i.e. working with major auteurs and roles that interested him. It stands out in either case, as one of the very few films where he plays the main lead when the majority of his career after that has been as a character actor and supporting actor. He found himself typecast as villains, while occasionally doing character turns, and in other cases appearing in small scene-stealing cameos (such as as the gas station attendant in ''Film/{{existenz}}'').

* LargeHam: Make no mistake, Willem Dafoe is some premium New York ham. Examples include ''Film/SpiderMan1'' and his audiobook of ''Literature/TheLangoliers'', but ''Film/TheLighthouse'' is easily Dafoe's most impressive venture into insane porkiness. Ironically, the actor himself is a pescatarian.
** Going back to an early role, in ''Film/StreetsOfFire'' it's very clear that Dafoe knows ''exactly'' what type of movie he's in, and dials up the ham as much as the movie required.

* ChewingTheScenery: Has a tendency to be over the top and [[LargeHam hammy]], specially for [[EvilIsHammy villainous parts]]. Special mention here goes to Dafoe's audiobook take on Creator/StephenKing's Literature/TheLangoliers, where Dafoe chews scenery that doesn't even exist and, on more than one occasion, out-hams ''the miniseries''.
* ChronicallyKilledActor: He dies ''a lot'' on-screen. His death scenes include ''Film/{{Platoon}}'', ''Film/TheLastTemptationOfChrist'', ''Film/Speed2CruiseControl'', ''Film/{{eXistenZ}}'', ''Film/ShadowOfTheVampire'', ''Film/SpiderMan1'', ''Film/OnceUponATimeInMexico'', ''VideoGame/BeyondTwoSouls'', ''Film/JohnWick'', ''Film/TheGreatWall'' among others. He also plays real-life film-maker Creator/PierPaoloPasolini in a 2014 biopic, a man famous for being brutally murdered. Ironic in that the character he plays in the Death Note movie, Ryuk, is a shinigami who writes people's names in his Death Note to kill them. [[spoiler: And just as ironically, his Green Goblin [[Film/SpiderManNoWayHome is now set]] to come BackFromTheDead after almost 20 years.]]