Why Harlan From The Umbrella Academy Season 3 Looks So Familiar
Contains spoilers for "The Umbrella Academy" Season 3.
Unfortunately for everyone's favorite wacky team of Hargreeves siblings, Season 3 of "The Umbrella Academy" brings new challenges their way. How many times must one family save the world? Well, since they broke it, as many times as it takes. This time, the Umbrellas travel to what they think is their present ... only to find that it is wholly different from when they left. It seems that after messing around in 1963, the collection of misfits have created a kugelblitz, but that isn't the only repercussion of their adventures. Viktor (Elliot Page) comes to realize that his relationship with Sissy (Marin Ireland) and her son Harlan (Justin Paul Kelly) has echoed to the present. Now, an adult Harlan resurfaces and it turns out Viktor's efforts to rid him of their destructive power were fruitless.
As a main focus of the season, Harlan is a significant connection for Viktor, so from a production standpoint, choosing the right actor to play him was of utmost importance. Thankfully, "The Umbrella Academy" knocked it out of the park with the casting of Callum Keith Rennie, who has had a long career playing baddies in major sci-fi and thriller properties.
Callum Keith Rennie suffered the consequences of Leonard's vengeance in Memento
With a long career of exemplary works, Christopher Nolan's movies speak for themselves. Known for his reality-twisting tales, Nolan's cult classic "Memento" throws the audience into the troubled mind of Leonard (Guy Pierce). After a traumatic brain injury, Leonard loses the ability to form short-term memories. His long-term memory is intact up until a certain point — that is, the last thing he remembers sequentially is the murder of his wife, who was killed by someone known only to him as John G. Because Leonard cannot form new memories, he relies on a series of tattooed hints on his own body, and the kindness of others — putting him at the mercy of anyone who might decide to use him for their own means.
This includes the deceptive Natalie (Carrie-Anne Moss), who promises to help him if he just gets rid of a troublemaker named Dodd for her. Though Callum Keith Rennie appears only briefly as Dodd, he represents an important lesson the audience learns, but one Leonard tragically never can — because Natalie aims Leonard at Dodd precisely because she knows that he is easy to manipulate. Leonard's predicament means he has to trust everything at face value simply because there is no time to do anything else. Though Dodd poses no real threat to him, Leonard gets rid of him anyway, opening a big can of worms that spirals into the disturbing end of "Memento."
Callum Keith Rennie was absolutely unhinged as a Cylon
Science fiction is known for tackling heavy real-life themes through allegory, and one of the greatest examples of this in recent TV history is "Battlestar Galactica." A reboot of the 1978 show of the same name, the award-winning series expanded on the original concept of a war between humans and robotic AIs known as Cylons by forcing the audience to grapple with the humanity of the seeming robot antagonists. While the Cylons are sympathetic, though, they — like humans — are not all so innocent. Some Cylons like Sharon (Grace Park) want to assimilate into human culture, for a better future. And then there are others that are questionable at best, such as Leoben (Callum Keith Rennie).
A religious fanatic, Leoben is obsessed with Starbuck (Katee Stackoff) and believes that God wants them to be together. Meanwhile, Starbuck hates Cylons so much that she subjects Leoben to inhumane torture, including waterboarding, drawing a clear parallel to the most controversial political issues of the time (via NPR).
Callum Keith Rennie becomes obsessed with yet another woman on 24
Callum Keith Rennie's talent at portraying compelling and dark characters continued on "24." For three episodes in Season 8, Rennie played the role of Vladimir Laitanan, an illegal weapons trafficker for a Russian crime syndicate. Unlike some of his previous roles, there is no moral gray area for Vladimir: The weapons dealer is an unequivocal villain as his interactions with the CTU make clear.
Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) — in an attempt to track down nuclear weapons meant to be used against the president — joins former FBI agent Renee Walker (Annie Wersching) who six years prior had gone under cover to disrupt Vladimir's operation. Vladimir had become obsessed with her and attempted to assault her. When they meet again, Renee attempts to use his twisted affection for her to their advantage and goes undercover again to get close to the weapons. Ultimately, Vladimir's obsession is his downfall. He is so blinded by his attraction to Renee that he never guesses her true intentions. When he reneges on their deal, Renee lashes back after all the torment she has suffered because of him, and kills him. Vladimir's time on "24" may have been short but his talent at portraying insidious characters is undeniable.
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Callum Keith Rennie and Hank Moody were kindred spirits
Showtime has produced many series with complicated characters, but "Californication" is one of the more humorous. Following Hank Moody's (David Duchovny) attempt to get his life together and write another book, Season 2 shows how he falls in with California's very own Great Gatsby.
Lew Ashby (Callum Keith Rennie) is a music producer who throws raucous parties when all he wants is his old girlfriend back. After Hank crashes his party one night, the two spend the night in the slammer together and realize they share a lot of life experiences. Both are artists in their own way, and both are users of controlled substances — prompting Lew to ask Hank to write his biography. Lew and Hank become incredibly close, with the rock producer sadly calling the writer his only friend.
That makes it all the more heartbreaking when Lew dies from a drug overdose at the end of Season 2. Unable to do anything else, Hank honors Lew's memory by finishing his biography. Though his death comes early in the series, Lew continues to appear in the show intermittently as Hank imagines conversations with him. A tragic character, Lew represents profound loneliness, and the possible path Hank may find himself on if he doesn't hold on to his family.
Callum Keith Rennie was Gary Connell in Man in the High Castle
"The Man in the High Castle" is just one of many Philip K. Dick books to make it to screen. Taking place in a world where the Germans won World War II, "The Man in the High Castle" is a daunting exploration of what life would be like in such a stark reality. The series later opens up the idea of a multiverse, when Juliana (Alexa Davalos) realizes that there are realities where America is not subjected to the Third Reich. Though she first lives contentedly under Japanese rule in San Francisco, she becomes part of the Resistance where she meets its leader Gary Connell (Callum Keith Rennie).
Though Connell may seem to be on the right side of history, his actions speak for themselves: In his aim to bring down the fascist regime, it's also clear he holds no sanctity for human life. He is so obsessed with his goals that he will do anything to get it. This point of view ends his life when he is executed by the Kempeitai.
Just as with other shows that Rennie has appeared on, "The Man in the High Castle" poses fascinating questions about real-world issues. Though Gary's motivations are righteous, he is just as hard-lined in his approach as the Nazis.
Callum Keith Rennie is responsible for who Jessica Jones becomes
The darkest corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, thus far, was highlighted in the Netflix shows like "Daredevil" and "The Punisher," with perhaps no series going as far in this regard as "Jessica Jones," now on Disney+. Jones is a private detective, with a tough exterior and super-strength, but a history of trauma and abuse. However, after Jessica kills her abuser, Kilgrave (David Tennant) at the end of Season 1, it seems she may have a chance to move on from her past.
Unfortunately, trauma comes hurtling towards her again in Season 2, when she realizes her long-dead mother Alisa (Janet McTeer) is not only alive, but she also possesses the same powers as Jessica. Callum Keith Rennie appears in this arc as Dr. Karl Malus, the doctor who saved the lives of both Jessica and Alisa. Karl also helped Alisa contend with her newfound strength, and in the meantime, he fell in love with her.
"Jessica Jones" wasn't a show known for happy endings, though, and this also proved to be the case for Karl and Alisa's romance. Soon after the discovery that Alisa is alive, Jessica's best friend Trish (Rachael Taylor) insists on being given powers as well, putting Karl's life in danger. After sustaining injuries in one experiment, Karl cannot accept what his work has become. He blows up his lab, dying in the process. Though he had the best of intentions, his failures are too much for him to bear.