Steve Carell's "Get Smart" already ranks as one of 2008's highest-profile movies and now, ten months before release, die-hard fans are buzzing over a mystery that's fit for super-spy Maxwell Smart: Who's playing Hymie?
For those who haven't seen the classic Sixties comedy show, Hymie was a robot with superhuman powers, played with deadpan perfection by Richard Gautier. Despite being a cutting-edge aide to the CONTROL spy team, he lacked the mental processing chip that would allow him to comprehend everyday idioms. For instance, if someone told Hymie to go jump in the lake, they'd better go get him a life preserver and a towel.
"I didn't work with Hymie," shrugged Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson when we put him under the Cone of Silence and probed him for details. "None of my scenes were with Hymie - but I met Hymie; he's a cool dude and very, very funny in the movie."
Besides Carell and Johnson, the flick features Anne Hathaway, Masi Oka, Bill Murray and Alan Arkin. After such a vague response, we were hoping The Rock would cough up the name of the actor playing the robot; then, he provided an intriguing clue. "I forgot his name," Johnson laughed. "I met him, but I forgot the guy's name. He's a great guy, a wonderful guy; a great human-being, and we spent a lot of time together."
Which basically means one of two things: Either Hymie is played by some unknown whose name would mean nothing to any of us, or there is some truth to the rumor that Rock's "Agent 23" (a character not in the original show) is revealed as the robot during the movie.
"No, no, no," Johnson said of the rumor. "I'm Agent 23, the best agent on the planet, the best agent that CONTROL has. I'm Steve Carell's best friend, and he looks up to me."
Next summer, we'll know the truth. But if we see The Rock between now and then, perhaps we should ask him to go jump in a lake.
Have any thoughts of your own? Let us know in the comments below!