Oscar Nunez Gives A Hilarious Take On His Casting In The Lost City - Exclusive
It's only taken 13 years, but Oscar Nuñez has finally re-teamed with his fellow, beloved comedy actor Sandra Bullock in "The Lost City." The two first worked together in the 2009 comedy smash "The Proposal," which also starred Ryan Reynolds and the late, great Betty White. In that romantic comedy, Nuñez turned up the charm as Ramone, a multitasking resident of Sitka, Alaska where Andrew (Reynolds) hails from in the film.
Flash-forward to 2022, and Bullock and Nuñez are sharing the screen once again in "The Lost City." Directed by Aaron Nee and Adam Nee, it tells the story of Loretta Sage (Bullock), a successful romance novelist who, as a former archaeology student, channels her love for ancient history into her stories. Her details are so vivid, in fact, that a wacko billionaire, Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe), kidnaps the author and brings her to an ancient city to decipher clues to locate a priceless artifact that she describes in her latest book. Witnessing her kidnapping, Sage's hunky cover model, Alan (Channing Tatum) follows Fairfax's trail to save the author despite not having any skills to do so. Loretta's publicist, Beth (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), also sets out to find her best friend, and she enlists the aid of Oscar (Nuñez), a cargo pilot who takes his pet goat, Randy, with him everywhere he goes.
Bullock and Nuñez, of course, have both enjoyed an immense amount of success in the interim years before teaming up again. Bullock has had a film career full of comedies and dramas, while Nuñez returned to his prize gig as Oscar — an accountant for the Dunder Mifflin paper company — in the classic NBC sitcom "The Office." And while it's been more than a decade and a half since "The Proposal," it appears that Bullock, who produced "The Lost City" as well as starring in it, didn't forget her time with Nuñez when it came to casting the new romantic comedy adventure, as she shared with Looper.
Nuñez was the first actor cast in 'The Lost City'
"The Lost City" is particularly special to Oscar Nuñez because, according to the production, Bullock sought out the actor specifically to play the role — and the actor was thrilled to learn that Bullock cast him first. Never wasting a potential moment to get some laughs, Nuñez hilariously embellished his "first to be cast" status when it came to his stating his importance to the film during an exclusive interview with Looper.
"It's funny you said that because I didn't know about that, but now the rumors, I guess, are true. She said, 'Are you available?' I said, 'Yes.' And then they took my character and built the entire movie," Nuñez cracked during the chat. "They placed everyone [around me, saying], 'Who can he balance off of? ... You know Tom Cruise? No. Brad Pitt?' They found people who [could work with me], and they built up on the foundation of a Christmas tree on the pole, and then it goes out and then it goes up to the pyramid. Patti [Harrison] is around here somewhere. Da'Vine is here [motions], and here's Sandra [motions]. Sure."
As for where Oscar's pet goat belongs in the "The Lost City" food chain, apparently Randy is nowhere to be found. "The goat was delicious," Nuñez joked.
"The Lost City" is in theaters now.