John Lithgow gets honest about Roald Dahl's legacy

Roald Dahl is known for his stories, such as Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

However, in John Lithgow's words, who is playing him in the play Giant, he said his legacy was complicated.

During an interview with The Times, the actor said, “Dahl wasn’t a monster covered by scales – he was a very complicated man damaged by terrible tragedies."

“Everything that was humane and compassionate about Dahl had to be in the play, along with the vitriol and cruelty, and you can see all that in his stories too," he added.

The play's director, Nicholas Hytner, praised John's performance, saying, “Even though he is the sweetest man, he does have the most extraordinary talent for playing monstrous characters.”

Also, the reviews about the play were glowing. A review in the Evening Standard called the “shocking, challenging” play “spectacularly good.” 

A critic writing in The Independent called it a “simmering, tense study” of the author and antisemitism with a “towering turn” from John.