Léon: The Professional

star Gary Oldman reveals that his iconic “EVERYONE!” line delivery was never intended to make the final cut of the movie. Released in 1994, director Luc Besson’s action thriller stars Jean Reno as Léon, an ᴀssᴀssin who takes the 12-year-old Mathilda (Natalie Portman) under his wing after her family is murdered. Oldman plays Léon: The Professional‘s main villain, Stansfield, a corrupt and violent DEA agent. One of the most iconic lines of Oldman’s career comes when he demands that a subordinate bring him “everyone” as backup before he then repeats the word in an exaggerated yell.

During a recent interview on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Oldman reveals that his shouting delivery of the word “everyone” was actually intended as a joke for Besson. The actor recalls wanting to make the director laugh on one particular take, but then the moment ended up in the final cut of the movie. Check out his recollection of the scene below:

“I did a couple of takes, ‘Bring me everyone. Everyone.’ And to make Luc Besson laugh, as a joke, I went to the sound guys and I said, ‘I’m going to be really, really loud.’ And I did that and he kept it and put it in the film. That was just an outtake. It was just me having a laugh.”

What Gary Oldman’s Line Delivery Meant For Léon: The Professional

The Movie Is An Action Classic

Oldman’s performance as Stansfield remains one of the most iconic of his long and successful career, due in large part to how his delivery of the “EVERYONE!” line has taken on a life of its own. The scene has become a meme online, further enhancing the movie’s reach. Stansfield is also widely considered one of the best movie villains of all time. While Léon: The Professional has certainly become a cult classic of sorts, it was also a success at the time of its release in the ’90s.

On Rotten Tomatoes, Léon: The Professional has a decent 75% score from critics, with praise aimed at Besson’s stylish directing and the surprisingly touching dynamic between Léon and Mathilda. It’s with audiences, however, that the film really succeeded, and it has a 95% Popcornmeter score from more than 250,000 user ratings. Made on an estimated budget of $16 million, the film went on to gross $45 million worldwide at the box office, a figure that is surely complemented by strong performance on home viewing platforms in the decades since its release.

Our Take On Oldman’s Léon: The Professional Performance

Stansfield Remains One Of His Best Roles

Oldman has delivered a number of truly iconic performances over the course of his career, appearing in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy as Commissioner Gordon, playing Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour (2017), and playing veteran spy George Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011). Oldman is also no stranger to playing villains, tackling larger-than-life figures like Zorg in The Fifth Element, Drexl Spivey in True Romance (1993), and Ivan Korshunov in Air Force One (1997).

Stansfield sits easily among these memorable characters, and Oldman’s delivery of the “EVERYONE!” line is certainly part of the reason why. Though sometimes bold acting choices don’t pay off or don’t gel with the rest of the film, that’s not the case with Oldman’s performance as Stansfield in Léon: The Professional.

Source: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert