Alright, โfess up. Who had Christopher Walken painting over a Banksy artwork for a six-part BBC comedy-drama series on their 2021 bingo card?
What weโve just described occurred during the final episode of BBCโs The Outlaws, co-created by Stephen Merchant โ notable Ricky Gervais collaborator, The Office (UK) co-creator โ and multi-hyphenate talent Elgin James, the man behind Sons of Anarchy spin-off series Mayans MC.
Starring Walken and Merchant, Rhianne Barreto, Gamba Cole, Darren Boyd, Clare Perkins, Eleanor Tomlinson, as well as Jessica Gunning, the story basically follows seven strangers from different walks of life, forced together while completing community service sentences in Bristol. Their luck, however, takes an unexpected turn when they discover a bag full of money โ โunaware some dangerous people are looking for it.โ
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The scene in question unfolds like soโฆ
โDiane, look at this rat I found,โ says Christopher Walkenโs Frank after pulling away a piece of wood.
โAny vermin under 10 kilos are yours, bag it and bin it,โ says Jessica Gunningโs uninterested Diana, community service supervisor, without looking away from the Lee Child novel sheโs reading.
โNo, itโs a graffiti rat,โ responds Frank.
โCouncil said paint over any graffiti so crack on,โ adds Diana.
โItโs awfully good,โ he counters, hesitant, and in an attempt to persuade her itโs worth preserving.
โLess debating, more painting,โ she shoots back.
Christopher Walken shrugs and the camera tightens on the Bansky graffiti rat as he rollers over the image entirely in just six strokes, closing out the series.
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โWe can confirm that the artwork at the end of The Outlaws was an original Banksy โ and that Christopher Walken painted over that artwork during the filming of this scene, ultimately destroying it,โ stated a spokesperson for Big Talk Productions, the company behind BBCโs The Outlaws.
Of course, this wouldnโt be the first time a Bansky was destroyed in public fashion. As many of you may recall, back in 2018, the anonymous artistโs iconic image of a girl reaching out for a red, heart-shaped balloon โ appropriately dubbed โGirl With Balloonโ โ was sold by Sothebyโs auction house for ยฃ1.1 million.
Almost immediately after the hammer came down, a shredder hidden inside the frame initiated a self-destruct sequence, shredding the canvas to ribbons. Re-dubbed โLove Is In The Binโ, it auctioned for an even heftier price tag of ยฃ18.58 million last month. But somehow, I donโt think this will be the same case with Walkenโs handiwork.
The scene isnโt available on YouTube just yet, but those of you in the UK can watch the entire episode via BBC iPlayer (and those of you who donโt will need to switch on a VPN).
