Who Did Robbie Coltrane Play In Ocean's Twelve?

On October 14, news began publicly circulating that prolific Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane died at 72 years old. Coltrane became a recognizable actor in the early 1980s, at which point he debuted as a central cast member of a sketch comedy show called "Alfresco." Even plenty of those who have never heard of this series will recognize some of Coltrane's co-stars, including Emma Thompson, Hugh Laurie, and Stephen Fry.

Around a decade after that, Coltrane cemented himself as a top character actor when he appeared as Russian mob leader Valentin Zukovsky in the "James Bond" films "GoldenEye" and "The World Is Not Enough." By that point, Coltrane was already an established presence on British TV screens as the star of shows like "Tutti Frutti" in 1987 and "Cracker" between 1993 and 1996.

In recent years, Coltrane became a less frequent presence in Hollywood, in part due to his close association with his well-known franchise film role that came to define him in many viewers' eyes. Nevertheless, Coltrane's performances in projects like a 2013 adaptation of "Great Expectations" and the biopic "Effie Gray" continued to earn him acclaim.

Among some of these mid-to-late career performances, as fans of the film may well remember, is a role in the Steven Soderbergh heist movie sequel "Ocean's Twelve."

"Ocean's Twelve," of course, revolves around a heist team composed of 12 members, meaning that its attention is spread relatively thin between those in its sizable main cast. Robbie Coltrane portrays an informant nicknamed Matsui who is not a part of this squad, so his presence in the film is limited. Nevertheless, his time onscreen is memorable, particularly for his role in a prank Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) play on the younger Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon).

Matsui works out of a coffee shop in Amsterdam called Dampkring, which filming location site Sceen It notes is a real-life business. During a meeting there, Danny, Rusty, and Matsui exchange what are clear, pseudo-philosophical nonsense statements meant to convince Linus they're speaking in code. Linus becomes flustered, and recites lyrics to the Led Zeppelin single "Kashmir." Danny and Rusty immediately take Linus outside the coffee shop and claim that his interjection insulted Matsui's infirm niece. In a Reddit thread about this scene, a number of users described it as a highlight of the franchise.

So, while Coltrane's contribution to the "Ocean's" movies is limited to a tertiary character only involved in the plot of "Ocean's Twelve," this character is nevertheless a part of a moment that remains a favorite among fans to this day.