Dharmendra was not thrilled with Bobby Deol playing the bad guy opposite Ranbir Kapoor in Animal: 'Tu villain hai?'

Bobby Deol played a bloodthirsty villain in Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Animal. The actor recently revealed his late father Dharmendra's reaction to it.

The revival of Bobby Deol’s career began with a supporting role in Salman Khan’s Race 3, gained momentum with Prakash Jha’s web series Aashram, and eventually reached a crescendo with his acclaimed villainous turn in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal in 2023. The film is credited with bringing Bobby back into the mainstream, enabling him to sign on to big-budget films and shows. But the actor recently revealed that his father, the late Dharmendra, was not completely sold on the idea of him doing a negative role.

Bobby Deol has revealed Dharmendra's reaction to him starring in Animal.

Bobby Deol recalls Dharmendra’s reaction to Animal

Animal stars Ranbir Kapoor as the titular antihero who faces an attack on his father and family from Abrar Haque, an estranged cousin. Abrar, played by Bobby, appeared on screen for only a few minutes in the second half, but earned praise for its characterisation and Bobby’s performance. Bobby was famously cast in the film after a picture of him, sitting grimly at a sporting event, went viral and caught the attention of writer-director Sandeep Reddy Vanga. Speaking on Shekhar Suman’s new show Shekhar Tonite, Bobby recalled “Jab mujhe Sandeep Reddy Vanga ka phone aaya, he said ‘Teri expression hai iss photograph mein (Sandeep Reddy Vanga called me and said I like your expression in this photo), I like this, and I want you in this.”

Bobby also talked about Dharmendra’s reaction to his villain turn in the film. “Animal jab lagi, papa said, ‘Tu villain hai?’ I said, ‘Hanji papa, but acha role hai papa’ (When Animal released, papa asked me if I was the villain. I told him yes, but that it’s a good role).” Animal, starring Ranbir in the lead, alongside Rashmika Mandanna, Anil Kapoor, Bobby, and Triptii Dimri, earned over ₹900 crore worldwide.

Bobby Deol’s career after Animal

After the success of Animal, Bobby appeared as the villain in three big-budget pan-India films - Kanguva, Daaku Maharaj, and Hari Hara Veera Mallu. The first tanked at the box office, while the other two were successes. He also appeared in a major role in Aryan Khan’s web series, The Ba***ds of Bollywood.

Bobby’s next release is slated to be Anurag Kashyap’s Bandar. He also has in the pipeline Yash Raj Films’ spy thriller Alpha, which stars Alia Bhatt and Sharvari in the lead roles. Bobby will then return to Tamil cinema with Jana Nayagan, Vijay’s final film, which has been stuck with the CBFC for months.