A Day in the Life of Haddonfield Movie Extra Bill Brown

Hollywood can call at any hour. When it does, Bill Brown of Haddonfield has to be ready immediately to drop what he’s doing and get to the shoot looking the part, whatever it is.

Brown is a film and TV extra, a suit-and-tie character; one of the nameless thousands who have made a career of waiting in the wings.

At least he doesn't have to learn too many lines.

Recently, he played a Russian head of state on the USA cable show Political Animals, which stars Sigourney Weaver. In Brown's big scene, he was directed to make a disgusted face as another diplomnat slyly reaches over and gives Weaver an inappropriate squeeze.

But Brown’s frown could end up on the cutting room floor. An extra can have 17-hour days, so bring a book, bring some work, but leave the ego at home, Brown advises.

To date, Brown has appeared next to—or behind, or passing on a street, or sitting near—Weaver, Robert De Niro, Jennifer Aniston, Ellen Burstyn, Bradley Cooper, Jamie Foxx and Reese Witherspoon. He even worked with Bradley Cooper in the upcoming , written by former teacher .

Just as his parts vary, so do the coworkers. Brown has worked commanding presences, those “as nice and down-home as can be,” and those who are, for lack of a better word, dumb.

He does not name names; his code, which he says is half professional and half of his own making, doesn't allow it. The first of these rules: do not overreach.

“Extras are just human props, but there are very specific rules for extras," Brown says. "There’s no speaking to the stars, no asking for autographs, no photos allowed. The actors have a great focus and we have to respect that.”

'I've only been here 40 years'

Brown’s worked as a realtor in Haddonfield for many years, but is best known for his coordination of the .

“Actually, I’m new in Haddonfield. I’ve only been here for 40 years,” Brown jokes.

He learned about working as an extra several years ago on a trip to the 30^th Street train station in Philadelphia.

“They were shooting a movie and someone asked me if I was an extra. When I told them I wasn’t, they told me I should be. So I checked it out," he recalls.

Extra acting is anything but a get-rich-quick propsition. Unpredictable in terms of both hour and preparation, an extra must be ready to grab the cloak and dagger, pinstripe suit, or chef’s hat and drive to wherever the filming is taking place.

Then there’s the cost consideration. In order to maximize the paycheck, one must seriously consider joining the Screen Actors Guild, a union shop for actors. It's not cheap—with a four-figure application fee and annual dues—but when you’re a SAG member, longer days also mean overtime. There’s no shortage of production filming in the South Jersey-Philadelphia area at any given time, Brown says, so the work, while unsteady, is there.

That other little extra—the not-to-be-sneezed-at paycheck which comes in the mail two weeks after a hard day’s work alongside the rich and famous—is a nice benefit, too.