Tom Hiddleston's impression of Owen Wilson is equally hilarious and impressive. The Loki actor has been known to have an ear for mimicry, playing F. Scott Fitzgerald, Hank Williams, and a series of British historic and political figures in TV and film. He's even been impersonated quite well himself, as Hiddleston once praised Chris Evans' Loki impression in Thor: The Dark World.
On the receiving end, Owen Wilson is among Christopher Walken and Morgan Freeman in an iconic category of voices everybody tries to impersonate. Most notably, Owen Wilson's "wow" has become not just a meme but an involuntary catchphrase. The combination of the muted nasal hum and slight whisper in his deliveries makes the word a perfect encapsulation of not just the actor but his characters' consistent attitudes. SNL cast member and impressionist, Melissa Villaseñor, has regularly pointed to Wilson as being her favorite voice to imitate.
Reddit user memetrooper_ pointed out that Tom Hiddleston did a spot-on Owen Wilson impression on The Graham Norton Show, posting the video to Reddit. In it, Hiddleston explains how the pair had worked together on Midnight in Paris, where Wilson's character travels back to the 1920s every night and encounters literary and artistic giants like F. Scott Fitzgerald, played by Hiddleston -- a kind of reversal of their Loki roles. When Hiddleston initially noticed Wilson not dressed in 1920s garb, he asked which historic figure Wilson was. Hiddleston then quoted Wilson's response while doing his best impression of his co-star, who gave the response below:
Oh, no, no, no, no! I'm from now! I go back in time! There's a time machine -- and uh -- It's kinda cool and it's kinda Woody [Allen] -- It's kind of -- It's kind of awesome!
Fellow actors on the couch, Robert De Niro, Anne Hathaway, and Kenneth Branagh, all got a huge kick out of it, Hiddleston pushing through audience uproar to keep the story going. Given the two actors had reunited for Loki, memetrooper_ laments in the post that Loki never had an opportunity to "mess with" Wilson's character, Mobius. Because the trickster god is known for manipulating his form to copy others, the decision to not throw the voice in the show either had to come from there never being the perfect moment or that it was just a bit too whimsical for a show focusing on the more serious elements of the MCU anti-hero.
What makes the impression all the more impressive is that Midnight in Paris features the most "wow"s of any Owen Wilson movie -- seven -- and yet Hiddleston refrained from using the iconic word a single time in his impression. Where most impressionists seek the low-hanging fruit of Walken's "Y'know" or Jimmy Stewart's "Well," Hiddleston showcased his bravado and ability to rise above. Given there will be a Loki season 2, Hiddleston may just get a chance to display his Wilson on Disney+ next time.
Source: memetrooper_