Billy Zane has declared that Package Walker aka The Phantom continues to be a individual of his most loved figures regardless of it getting a bomb.

The ghost who walks. The guy who can not die. Which is suitable – it is Billy Zane! Well, The Phantom, but it appears significantly cooler with Billy Zane immediately connected. And he could possibly not head, either, seeking at it is a single of his favorite endeavors of his profession.

Speaking with The A.V. Club, Billy Zane declared that Kit Walker aka The Phantom stands as “one of my favored people.” But the film alone was a flop, with the June 7th, 1996 opening weekend obtaining it opening at #6, in spite of only 1 other title that week getting a new release. As Zane remembered, “It acquired a whole lot of adhere early on simply because it was not edgy at a time when all individuals videos ended up likely dim. I’ve normally held a torch for what I saw as a dying genre, which was adventure. I was elevated on journey, and I feel it’s so quickly overlooked as how vital it is to young boys and women.”

This motion is what drew Billy Zane to The Phantom, saying, “I actually comprehended the ethos of that, which is why I imagine I obtained the function. I just knew it and I was holding a torch for it… and it was a candle in the wind at the time, but then this factor arrived about, and I was, like, ‘A-ha! At final!’ It was a thing that would advantage from this unusual adoration and fixation on all points Errol Flynn and Tarzan. A satisfied hero. Go determine! No difficulties. Properly-modified. Animal buddies. Male cave. Girlfriend. The relatives business enterprise. Existence is excellent!”

Irrespective of a incredibly sturdy strong that also bundled Catherine Zeta-Jones (in her initial important American job), Deal with Williams and Kristy Swanson, The Phantom just did not merely click with audiences or critics, unable to land what Alec Baldwin and The Shadow had attempted to do two decades prior. This killed any hopes for a franchise, regardless of the reality that conversations did pop up many years later more than a probable reboot. Even even now, there is a small one thing to recognize about The Phantom now. And when Billy Zane may in no way return to the character and has other endeavors probably on – these sorts of as proving a spitting image of Marlon Brando – we can continue to dig The Phantom for what it is.

Are you a fan of The Phantom? In which would you rank it in a checklist of incredibly most effective Billy Zane performances? Drop your feelings beneath – and keep in mind, Slam Evil!