Casting Role's for Death of a Salesman

If I was casting a movie for Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, I would choose the following actors to play Willy, Linda, Happy and Biff.

Willy – Russell Crowe
Linda - Helen Hunt
Happy -Matt Damon
Biff - Owen Wilson

Willy Loman is an aging salesman who is dealing with depression. He talks to himself throughout the play and imagines people that are not really there. Willy also has flash backs in the play where he envisions events that happened in his life before now. I chose to go with Russell Crowe for the character because he fits the part very well. Russell played the main role in “A Beautiful Mind” and it couldn’t have been played any better. I believe from his experience in “A Beautiful Mind” Russell could easily depict Willy’s characteristics.

Linda Loman, Willy’s wife, is the back bone of the family. She tries her best to cope with Willy’s actions and his feuds with Biff.  Helen Hunt is the actress I would choose for this role. She has always been a strong woman character in my eyes. I believe she would be able to portray Linda’s life in the movie by using her experience from the other movies she has been in.

Happy Loman is the younger of the two sons. Happy has always lived in the footsteps of Biff until now. Happy was always almost completely ignored by Willy throughout the early years of his life. Now Happy is successful as an assistant and more settled and matured than Biff. I would choose Matt Damon to play this role in the movie. Happy is considered a handsome man who can easily pick up women. Matt Damon has portrayed a successful man and a man who lived a good life in a couple of movies. Matt’s skill and experience would help him become Happy Loman in the movie.

Biff Loman is the older of the two sons. He was the star child throughout the early years, but has since taken a step back. Biff is continuously trying to find himself and become a settled man. I would ask Owen Wilson to play this role in the movie. Owen Wilson has the ability to play someone who is lost and hasn’t matured. He also has the ability to portray a settled character in a movie and a more serious role.