The upcoming Ted Bundy film Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile starring Zac Efron, continues to gather a varied array of talent for what is shaping up to be a must-see take on the serial killer. Now, the Voltage Pictures production has just added some seriously rocking talent in Metallica front man James Hetfield. The lead vocalist and co-founder of the legendary metal band joins the film not in any musical capacity, but in a dramatic role.
According to Deadline, James Hetfield will play Utah highway patrolman Officer Bob Hayward in the film. The character is described as a no-nonsense veteran of the force. Officer Hayward was the first law enforcement officer to arrest Ted Bundy when, in 1975, he pulled Bundy over and discovered burglary tools in his car. As for James Hetfield, the man has been a part of Metallica, and thus a famous entertainer for decades. However, he hasn't really forayed into acting, as so many other musicians do (and vice versa), until now. James Hetfield does have credits for providing his voice to the Skylanders Academy video game and he has played himself in various projects, but this will be his first dramatic role where he will play a different character.
While this might seem like an out-of-left-field choice, there is actually already a connection between James Hetfield and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile director, Joe Berlinger. The Oscar-nominated director, who has a ton of documentary credits to his name, directed and produced the Metallica: Some Kind of Monster documentary along with Bruce Sinofsky. Following his experience working on the rock doc and following the band, Joe Berlinger co-authored a book titled Metallica: This Monster Lives. So, clearly the director has a working relationship with the band and saw something in James Hetfield that makes him right for the role of Bob Hayward. The director actually pitched James Hetfield to be in the movie and feels that he can bring his natural charisma and magnetism to the dramatic role.
While I imagine this will not be a huge role in the film, which will be told from the perspective of Ted Bundy's girlfriend, Elizabeth Kloepfer, it is a pivotal one. Officer Bob Hayward, who died last year, was almost off duty when he took a wrong turn and ended up stoppingTed Bundy. Good old-fashioned policeman's intuition gave him a funny feeling about Bundy and the rest, as they say, is history. This scene should be dripping with tension and it will be fun to see what James Hetfield brings to the role.
James Hetfield joins a very interesting cast, which includes Lily Collins as Elizabeth Kloepfer as well as Haley Joel Osment, Kaya Scodelario, Jim Parsons and John Malkovich. Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile does not currently have a release date. For all the latest in rock icons, serial killers and weird sounding film titles, keep it tuned to CinemaBlend.
