Javier Bardem made a dream come true with his No Country For Old Men cast

In an interview with The Irish Independent, Bardem expressed genuine shock at being cast as Anton Chigurh in "No Country for Old Men" in 2007. "Since I saw Blood Simple , I always dreamed of working with them, but it seemed unlikely," he said. "I mean, they always make these very deeply American movies where there's no obvious role for an outsider, so when it happened I just couldn't believe it. I'm so proud to belong to a Coen Brothers movie."

It's not often you hear an actor say they have to "belong" in a movie. Most performers will point out, with a mix of publicist-designed modesty and confidence, that they've more than earned the right to be in the film, but the Coens are different. They are in the cinematic stratosphere with Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jane Campion, Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino. The actors look at these directors with admiration. It's as if a minor league baseball player was called to the show, even though Bardem, who previously received an Oscar nomination for his brilliantly brash portrayal of poet Reinaldo Arenas in Julian Schnabel's "Before Night Falls," was a equally auspicious take. for the Coens.