Playing a twisted serial killer like Charles Manson may seem like a daunting task, but actor Damon Herriman is embracing it without hesitation. In fact, he apparently does such a great job impersonating Manson that he’s been cast not just once as the psychopath, but twice.
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It was revealed earlier this week that Quentin Tarantino had chosen Herriman to play Charles Manson in his upcoming movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. If you’re unfamiliar, the film is about the Manson Murders in 1969, an event in which followers of Manson murdered five people in Hollywood, including actress Sharon Tate. Tarantino had been building an all-star cast for some time, including A-listers Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Al Pacino, and Margot Robbie, who will take on the role of Sharon Tate.
After news broke of Tarantino’s decision to hire Herriman as the notorious killer, Collider dug a little deeper and learned that another prominent filmmaker had already cast the actor for the exact same role. Of course, the filmmaker in question is none other than David Fincher.
According to Collider‘s report, Fincher had tapped Herriman to play Manson in the second season of his acclaimed Mindhunter series on Netflix. Details on the new installment had been kept under wraps, which is likely the reason why the casting of Herriman hadn’t been made public.
While Herriman will be playing Manson in both projects, he will be taking on two very different versions of the killer. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood takes place in 1969, when Manson was in his mid-30s. However, Manson’s appearance in Mindhunter will take place in the ’80s, at least a decade after the events of Tarantino’s film.
Herriman may not be a household name just yet, but he’s clearly doing something right to get the attention of acclaimed filmmakers like Fincher and Tarantino. To this point, the actor’s most notable role was on FX’s Justified, where he played Dewey Crowe.
Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is filming now, and is expected to arrive in theaters on July 26, 2019. Season 2 of David Fincher’s Mindhunter doesn’t yet have a release date on Netflix.
