Why Shane Dekker From Chaos Looks So Familiar
Netflix is a unique platform where films that initially made little impression on audiences can achieve a second life and find new fans. One such film that's finding a brand new audience on streaming is the 2005 Jason Statham action film, "Chaos." The film, directed by Tony Giglio, has a surprisingly deep roster of impressive supporting performers, including "Blade" star Wesley Snipes and "Ready or Not" actor Henry Czerny, as well as a particularly strong performance by the actor who portrays Shane Dekker -– the brand new partner to Statham's Detective Quentin Conners.
If Dekker appears familiar, that's because he is portrayed by film and television actor Ryan Phillippe. An actor with a long body of work and a robust IMDb page, Phillippe's credits cross a wide range of genres. With that in mind, there are plenty of roles that you likely know him from during his years as a performer.
He was murdered in I Know What You Did Last Summer
One of Ryan Phillippe's earliest notable roles came with the release of the 1997 slasher classic "I Know What You Did Last Summer." Part of the post-"Scream" slasher boom of the 1990s, "I Know What You Did Last Summer" follows a group of teens as they find themselves picked off one by one a year after seemingly killing someone on the side of a secluded road while recklessly driving. In the film, Ryan Phillippe plays a character named Barry Cox -– an impulsive and quick-to-anger high schooler who is stalked and killed by The Fisherman.
An adaptation of a 1973 novel, "I Know What You Did Last Summer" was part of a large slasher revival that took place after the debut of Wes Craven's "Scream" in 1996, which included films like "Halloween H20: 20 Years Later" as well as the 1998 "Psycho" remake. Ultimately, the film was a success and spawned two sequels, though Phillippe's unfortunate fate in the first one prevented him from reprising his role as Barry in the later movies. A reboot series is currently in the works at Amazon, but there's no word as to whether or not it will include any members of the original cast.
He played a wealthy New York teenager in Cruel Intentions
Ryan Phillippe's heartthrob status was arguably solidified in 1999 with the debut of Roger Kumble's "Cruel Intentions." The iconic 1990s drama is a loose adaptation of the 18th-century book "Les Liaisons dangereuses" by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, but updates the story for a modern era by translating the narrative to New York City. The film tells the story of step-siblings Sebastian Valmont and Kathryn Merteuil (Ryan Phillippe and Sarah Michelle Gellar) who hatch a plan to seduce Annette Hargrove (Reese Witherspoon), the daughter of their school's headmaster.
"Cruel Intentions" proved to be a massive success when it debuted in 1999. As such, the film went on to inspire a prequel and a sequel, as well as a Broadway musical adaptation. In October 2021, a report from Deadline confirmed that a series reboot of "Cruel Intentions" was in development at IMDb TV, though it does not currently look like Ryan Phillippe (or any other cast members from the original) will be involved in that particular project.
He was an LAPD cop in Crash
Ryan Phillippe has appeared in numerous award-winning films over the course of his career. However, the biggest of the bunch is Paul Haggis' 2005 film "Crash," which was nominated for six Academy Awards in 2006 and took home three, including the coveted Best Picture Oscar. The film tells an interwoven tale of social and racial tensions in Los Angeles. In the movie, Phillippe plays a rookie LAPD police officer named Tom Hansen, a man who initially tries to do the right thing and report racist misconduct within his department, but ultimately proves himself to be arguably just as racist as the LAPD cops he stands up to when he shoots and kills a Black hitchhiker whom he picks up on the side of the road.
Despite its 2006 Best Picture Oscar win, "Crash" has largely become maligned by many moviegoers in the years since it debuted. In fact, it has even been viewed as one of the worst Best Picture winners of all time, largely for the less than elegant ways in which it handles its heavy subject matter. With that said, despite the film's now-shaky reputation, its status as an Oscar winner is firmly planted, and Ryan Phillippe is part of that legacy.
He partnered with MacGruber
Ryan Phillippe does not have an overwhelmingly comedy-heavy resume. That said, one of the most notable comedies in his filmography also happens to arguably be one of the most underrated comedies of the last decade. In 2010, Phillippe partnered with Kristen Wiig and Will Forte on "MacGruber," an adaptation of the beloved, recurring "Saturday Night Live" sketch of the same name. The film follows the titular hero (an amalgam of numerous 1980s action icons, but mostly MacGyver) as he comes out of retirement to take on his arch-nemesis – Val Kilmer's Dieter von Cunth.
Though surrounded by comedy stars in the film, Phillippe's Dixon Piper holds his own against Forte in many of the film's best scenes. Initially served up as the film's straight man, Piper (a traditional badass in his own right) learns a few moves from MacGruber throughout the film, such as how to distract bad guys by sticking celery up one's butt, and how to rip out a man's throat. Many fans of the film anxiously await the upcoming revival series on Peacock, and according to an interview he recently gave Bleeding Cool, Phillippe will return.
He inherited Shooter's Bob Lee Swagger role from Mark Wahlberg
When USA's "Shooter" debuted in 2016, Ryan Phillippe stepped into the role of Bob Lee Swagger, a former Special Forces created by author Stephen Hunter in the book "Point of Impact." That book was the basis for Antoine Fuqua's 2007 film, "Shooter," which saw Mark Wahlberg step into the role of Swagger. Phillippe's small screen take on Swagger allowed the actor to delve deeper into the character's lore than Wahlberg, with a much deeper exploration of his backstory and his personal relationships than what was depicted in the film.
"Shooter" was well-received by audiences upon its debut in 2016. It ran on the USA Network for three seasons and a grand total of 31 episodes before being canceled in 2018. However, despite the show's cancellation, Deadline's report of its conclusion also noted that the producers were working on shopping the series around for a new home. As of 2021, "Shooter" has not found a new network or streaming service.
He was killed quickly on Big Sky
"Big Sky" made a major splash when it debuted on ABC last year. In the run-up to its premiere, the mysterious series made a big marketing push in an attempt to draw in audiences by largely pitching Ryan Phillippe's Cody Hoyt as one of its main characters. However, the series (which has become known for its wild twists since its premiere) pulled the rug out from under audiences in the very first episode by delivering an unceremonious demise to Cody in Episode 1 via a bullet to the head.
Though Cody meets his death incredibly early in the Season 1 run of "Big Sky," there were reportedly versions of the script that kept him around longer when the series went through its initial development stage. In fact, series producer David E. Kelley revealed earlier this year that the big death originally wasn't going to happen in the pilot and that there would have been a more substantial cliffhanger teasing out his downfall. Alas, that's not how things panned out for Cody, and Phillippe met his end in the show's pilot, showing up again only in flashback sequences.