The Fly’s Jeff Goldblum Recalls Intense Scenes And Those Oscar-Winning Effects

In what’s shaping up to be a busy week for the great and powerful Jeff Goldblum, the Thor: Ragnarok actor has been chatting to Yahoo Movies (h/t Bloody Disgusting) about one of his most famous roles: Seth Brundle.

Yes, David Cronenberg’s The Fly still holds a special place in Goldblum’s heart, as it helped launch his film career back in 1986. It’s also one of his more memorable performances – even by Jeff Goldblum’s own lofty standards – as his wildly eccentric scientist mutated beyond recognition soon after his DNA was fused with that of a bug-eyed insect.

As for Seth Brundle’s status as an atypical ’80s sex symbol, Goldblum told Yahoo Movies the following:

I had my flowy locks at that point. If anything is attractive, at least for me, it is somebody who is passionate and interested in something, and focused on something, and has some brainpower too, and that character is supposed to be kind of a smarty pants. So, you know, maybe that was attractive. And of course, once I get mashed up with the fly DNA, I’m given to great power, volatile storms and a sexuality, a fevered unquenchable sexuality.

But if there’s one thing that helped The Fly succeed beyond all expectations, it’s the film’s remarkable effects, for which Chris Walas and Stephan Dupuis won an Academy Award.

Goldblum continued:

Chris Walas won the Oscar for that, yes. And Stephan Dupuis, for five hours, put me in a dentist’s chair and applied that thing. And then another hour after we were done… ya know, rub rub rub… took it off. Kinda squeezed on this suit… rubbery suit… so I look all boily… misshapen. And then prosthetics. It’s not the most comfortable thing but it wasn’t bad. It was a fun thing to do.

And it seems the vomit-spewing Seth Brundle is set for a comeback. Early last year, it was reported that a modern reimagining of David Cronenberg’s body-horror classic was in the works with J.D. Dillard (Sleight). From what we understand, the director initially opened talks with Fox to shepherd The Fly remake alongside writing partner Alex Theurer, though it’s still early, early days.