- Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon was contacted by Coen brothers
- Vernon auditioned for a lead part in one of their films
- “I realized I was in an audition, and I didn’t know that”
You’ve probably heard the heart-tugging sounds of Bon Iver in a movie or TV show without even realising it. The band’s melancholic tones are made for cinema – especially during emotional scenes.
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But did you know frontman Justin Vernon once auditioned for a role in a Coen brothers movie? And it didn’t go well, proving his music might be made for the screen, but his acting? Not so much.
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Take 2009’s The Twilight Saga: New Moon, for example. Bon Iver’s Rosyln soundtracks a somber montage after Edward leaves Bella. She’s heartbroken and wistful, and the dreamy music makes it hit even harder. It gives all the feels, as you can see from the below video:
Another Bon Iver song, The Wolves (Act I and II), features during the end credits of The Place Beyond the Pines (2012). The haunting sounds fit the emotionally-heavy film just perfectly.
And of course, arguably the band’s best-known track, Skinny Love, has appeared countless times on screen, from Grey’s Anatomy to NBC’s Chuck
But what about Vernon’s own move from voice to screen?
Bon Iver frontman received an email from Coen brothers
Vernon is currently doing press for the band’s new album, SABLE, fABLE, and in a recent episode of the Handsome podcast, he opened up about his experience auditioning for the Coen brothers’ 2013 film Inside Llewyn Davis.
The movie, set in 1960s New York City, follows a struggling folk singer trying to make it in the competitive music scene.
Speaking on the podcast, Vernon revealed, “I made movies growing up with my friends,” and joked that he was “never allowed to be on camera because I was so bad at acting.” Maybe that should’ve been a sign of things to come…
He went on to explain that he got an email from the Coen brothers asking if he’d be interested in reading for a part in one of their films. “There’s no way in high hell that I can do this. I definitely am not built for this. I don’t wanna be any more famous than I just got,” he recalled thinking at the time.
But after some thought, he started to consider it. “Maybe this was something I was meant to do, or maybe I need to grow into this,” he said. Eventually, he agreed to meet the directors in New York.
“I realized I was in an audition, and I didn’t know that”
Vernon met with the Coen brothers at Joel’s apartment on the Upper West Side. Looking back, he finds it a bit embarrassing, but he recalls telling them, “Hey, I’m such a huge fan, it’s so great to meet y’all, I’ve been really thinking about this.”
He tried to make small talk, discussing shifting his tour dates around to make it work, even bringing up Minneapolis. But the brothers quickly steered the conversation back to the script. “Hey man, why don’t we just sit down and read a little bit?” they said.
Recalling the moment on the podcast, Vernon admitted, “In that moment, it was the most dun dun dun moment of my life. I realized I was in an audition, and I didn’t know that. And I was completely paralyzed.”
He explained how the whole thing ended with him being laughed at, saying, “So I’m sitting there, I’m a terrible actor, I’ve read this thing exactly once … I’m so bad, I’m sitting curled up on the couch staring at the paper … they were kinda laughing … It was OK that they were laughing at me because I was so bad.”
The Grammy award-winning musician revealed that the part “ended up being acted by Oscar Isaac, it’s a movie called Inside Llewyn Davis”.
You can watch Vernon talking about the audition in the clip below:
