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| “ | If it's really important to you, you can tell everybody you've got a rich white boy on a rope. I really don't care. I think you're on too much of your own product. But drugs? No f***ing way. | „ |
| ~ Walter Wade Jr. |
Walter Wade Jr. is the main antagonist of the 2000 action-thriller film Shaft.
He was portrayed by Christian Bale, who also played Patrick Bateman in American Psycho, Ace Novelty in Moville Mysteries, Raskolnikov in the 2000 film adaptation of Crime and Punishment, Trevor Reznik in The Machinist, and Gorr the God Butcher in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Biography[]
The son of a wealthy and powerful real estate developer in New York City, Wade is a cruel, entitled narcissist who lashes out violently at anyone who stands up to him or refuses to give him his way. He is also a virulent racist who thinks all Black people are inferior, especially to him. One night, he goes to a club and drunkenly hurls racial slurs at Trey Howard, a young African-American man. Howard responds by making a Ku Klux Klan-like hood out of a napkin and dropping it on Wade's head. When the other club patrons laugh at him, Wade flies into a rage and bludgeons Howard to death with a lead pipe in the alley next to the club. When questioned by Detective John Shaft, Wade claims to have acted in self-defense, but mocks Howard as he dies. Disgusted, Shaft punches Wade in the face, breaking his nose.
Wade jumps bail and flies to Switzerland, escaping justice for two years. Meanwhile, his father bribes the one witness to the murder, Diane Palmieri, to keep quiet. When the younger Wade tries to sneak back into the U.S., Shaft is waiting for him and put him under arrest. While in jail, Wade meets drug dealer Peoples Hernandez and asks him to kill Shaft. In return, he sells Peoples' cocaine to his rich friends.
Ultimately, however, Shaft persuades Palmieri to testify against Wade. Before Palmieri has the chance, however, Trey's mother shoots and kills Wade on the first day of the trial as he walks into the courthouse, thus avenging her son’s death.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Shaft and American Psycho (both of which Christian Bale starred in) came out in 2000.
- According to an interview with Christian Bale, one of the main reasons he took on the role was because of a fight scene between Walter Wade, Jr. and Shaft on an airport runway. The scene was filmed, but cut to make room for more scenes with Jeffrey Wright, who got a high audience score in preview.
- Christian Bale had no interest in playing Walter, as he had just portrayed a similar character in American Psycho. But one day, he was reading lines with Toni Collette, who serves as the witness in the film, and changed his mind.
- Vin Diesel was asked to play Walter but declined it.