Walter Stuckel (Fred Ward) from The Player(1992) is another one of the minor characters that stood out among the minor characters universe within this film. Between him and David, his character space is smaller, and the length of time he is seen with Griffin is shorter but lucky for him he didn’t die. Being the head of security he must protect Griffin’s reputation despite being aware of the fact that Griffin committed murder. However, I think there is more to his role than just taking care of his boss and keeping the company standing.
We first see Stuckel at 44:05 and at first, we assume that he is a key character due to the close-up and spinning of the chair, to then have Griffin walk in and switch positions with him. Right away, Stuckel is suspicious of Griffin due to his late arrival then immediately delves into the seriousness of the matter at hand. Kahane’s murder. The beginning of this scene follows Straw’s discussion about “bits of business moments of acting” (80) that we recognize as an “illumination of character[s] and anchoring of mood” (80) from his article “The Small Parts, Small Players dossier Introduction” that Stuckel and Griffin are displaying. Their reaction to each other’s words cement the tone of the story and help to tell us what is at risk if Griffin’s deeds are exposed.
Despite knowing what Griffin has done Stuckel assists him in covering up the fact that he is a criminal. To say Stuckel is holding Griffin accountable isn’t the correct statement, it’s more that Stuckel is forcing Griffin to come clean about the event so that he can properly protect Griffin and the company from vulnerabilities. In the “Characterization and Distribution” chapter of his book “The One vs the Many: Minor Characters and the Space of the Protagonist in the Novel” Alex Woloch says “the tension between the authenticity of a character in-and-of-himself “ (15) works to improve the conflict of the film, and this can not be done with the protagonist alone. Minor characters are necessary for a story’s plot to contribute to the realism of the story. By creating and escalating the main conflict Stuckel is moving the plot forward by showing us a different side to the protagonist’s character, but also assisting Griffin in keeping his crime away from the hands of the press.
Works cited:
Straw, Will. “The Small Parts, Small Players Dossier Introduction.” Screen, Volume 52, Issue 1, Spring 2011, Pages 78–81, https://doi.org/10.1093/screen/hjq057
Accessed 16 Oct. 2023
Woloch, Alex. “Introduction: Characterization and Distribution.” The One vs. the Many: Minor Characters and the Space of the Protagonist in the Novel, Princeton University Press, 2003, pp. 12–42. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt7srp4.4.
Accessed 16 Oct. 2023.
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