John Carl Buechler’s 1986 horror/fantasy hybrid, Troll, has become infamous for many of the wrong reasons, but it’s also gained some notoriety because of an important piece of casting.
There’s a real art to turning out a satisfying B-movie and Troll hits the perfect sweet spot. The film is incredibly silly and its imperfections are prevalent, but that’s helped the movie become such a conversation place. Strangely, Troll 2 and Troll 3, which happen to be unrelated to Troll, have also gained equally notorious reputations.
Troll looks at the unassuming Potter family (including their son, Harry), who move into a San Francisco apartment building and run amok a dangerous troll named Torok, who used to be a former wizard. Torok possesses the daughter of the Potter family, Wendy, and becomes set on transferring his fantasy-laden world into the urban cityscape of San Francisco. Troll is a great dose of ‘80s nostalgia, but in addition to the cheesy effects and storyline, it also acts as a certain celebrity’s introduction to the industry.
Jeanette Cooper In Troll Was Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ First Major Acting Role
Wendy and Harry Potter are Troll’s focus, but all of the tenants in their apartment building become Torok’s unsuspecting prey. One of the other victimized tenants that Torok attacks is Jeanette Cooper, who is notably played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. What’s significant here is that this isn’t just one of Louis-Dreyfus’ first roles, but it is her first role. Troll gave Julia Louis-Dreyfus her big start in 1986, before she would then appear in Woody Allen’s Hannah and Her Sisters the same year and then National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation in 1989 before she found her breakout role as Elaine Benes in Seinfeld in 1990.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Jeanette Cooper is a struggling actress who’s working as a waitress and isn’t crucial to Troll’s story, but does end up running into Wendy/Torok at the wrong time. Jeanette gets turned into a wood nymph, who prances around Torok’s transformed world in basically nothing at all. Jeanette is turned into Torok’s unwilling arm candy and her fate is left unresolved after this point. Presumably, she’s returned to normal after Torok’s spell is over, but she isn’t provided any closure. In spite of making a very strong first impression in Troll, Julia Louis-Dreyfus has yet to return to the horror genre after her debut film. Even though Louis-Dreyfus is one of the biggest names in comedy, perhaps the right project will eventually bring her back to her unexpected acting roots.
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