Actor-turned-director Mark Ruffalo may have had Orlando Bloom and Juliette Lewis with him onstage for the premiere of his new movie "Sympathy for Delicious," but the star of the show was the film's screenwriter and lead actor, Christopher Thornton.
Thornton wrote the part of Dean, a homeless turntablist in a wheelchair who discovers he has a healing touch — and wrestles with whether to use this gift to help a priest (played by Ruffalo) or to become a rock star (in a band fronted by Lewis' and Bloom's characters).
The movie had its premiere Saturday night at the Racquet Club Theatre in Park City.
When asked how much of the part was based on his real life, Thornton said, "I hope very little. I hope that if I could heal somebody, I wouldn't be that much of a ***** about it."
Dean has been paralyzed about 18 months, at a point when he's still bitter and learning to deal with his disability. "I know what that's like," said Thornton, who was paralyzed after a rock-climbing accident in 1992.
After his accident, Thornton said he received advice from religious friends, and even attended a few shows by evangelical healers. "They're crazy experiences," Thornton said. "You can get really caught up in the euphoria in the room."