5 Stacy Keach Roles That Stole Him All The Scenes
There are few character actors who can light up the screen like Keach.
'Fat City'
There was a time when those raw, powerhouse actors looked incredibly interesting, had classical Shakespeare training, and could blend into any movie genre.
One of the best was Stacy Keach, who we lost earlier today at the ripe young age of 85. Keach spent decades stepping into frame and taking immediate ownership of whatever was happening on screen. He was a lion, able to box you into a corner or to sit back and manipulate you with his words.
Today, I want to go over five different roles where Keach hijacked every scene.
Let's dive in.
1. Fat City (1972) - Billy Tully
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- Director: John Huston
- Writer: Leonard Gardner
- Cast: Stacy Keach, Jeff Bridges, Susan Tyrrell, Candy Clark, Nicholas Colasanto
This is a criminally underrated movie you should run to see whenever you get the chance. For Keach, it's probably his finest performance, and certainly the first one I thought about. He plays Billy Tully, an aging, alcoholic boxer trying to pull his life together for one last run in the ring. Too bad that run will come against a young puncher who's got him outmatched, played by Jeff Bridges.
Keach anchors the movie with a desperate optimism that everything will be okay, even though you know it will not.
2. Up in Smoke (1978) - Sergeant Stedenko
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- Director: Lou Adler
- Writer: Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong
- Cast: Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Stacy Keach, Strother Martin, Edie Adams
The very idea that just a couple of years after doing a boxing drama, he could be one of the stars of the first stoner comedy should prove to you the man has range. Keach plays Sergeant Stedenko, the narcotics officer determined to bust Cheech and Chong.
It's safe to say they get the better of him time and time again, but Keach's character is so goofy and unrelenting he steals a lot of the jokes. He takes the role so seriously you don't have to be high to enjoy it.
3. The Long Riders (1980) - Frank James
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- Director: Walter Hill
- Writer: Bill Bryden, Steven Smith, Stacy Keach, James Keach
- Cast: Stacy Keach, James Keach, David Carradine, Keith Carradine, Robert Carradine, Dennis Quaid, Randy Quaid
Another hidden gem of a movie. Walter Hill makes westerns that rattle your bones. He cast real-life brothers to play iconic outlaw siblings, and Stacy Keach co-wrote the script, too. His brother James Keach plays Jesse James; Stacy plays Frank.
It's funny to think how smart they were to get involved in this, because you can see them pulling the best work out of one another. There's so much physicality in both their performances and in the way they relate to each other.
4. American History X (1998) - Cameron Alexander
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- Director: Tony Kaye
- Writer: David McKenna
- Cast: Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Stacy Keach, Beverly D'Angelo, Avery Brooks, Fairuza Balk
Probably one of the scariest and most depressing movies ever made. It's harrowing, and once you've seen it, it'll haunt your dreams. Keach is only in a few scenes, but his work as Cameron Alexander, the Neo Nazi organizer who indoctrinates young men into hate groups, is gruesome. His words are so manipulative and brash; we hate him more than anything else in the movie. He's a literal stand-in for all the bigotry in the world.
5. Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014) - Wallenquist
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- Director: Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller
- Writer: Frank Miller
- Cast: Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Josh Brolin, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rosario Dawson, Stacy Keach, Eva Green
The sequel has its bright spots, and Keach is one of them. This is a world he was perfect for. He plays Wallenquist, the grotesque crime lord at the top of Basin City's food chain. Keach gets to wear a ton of prosthetics and use his spooky voice to command every scene. You can't look away from him.
Summing It All Up
Keach is one of those actors they just don't make anymore. Losing him feelsl ike we're losing ab ig piece of Hollywood. The characters he played will live on in both our dreams and our nightmares, and on 4K discs as well.
