DeWet du Toit, South Africa’s own Tarzan. Photos: Provided
It’s enough to set one’s head spinning: Tarzan appearing in hit series 7de Laan and in Binnelanders, but so he has… South Africa’s own Tarzan, DeWet du Toit, an Afrikaans boykie from the Southern Cape, is building a career in films.
DeWet arrived in the City of Gold some seven months ago and has been working on local and international productions such as Madiba and Rivonia: An Act of Defiance, starring Laurence Fishburne.
It’s a bit part, he says
The muscle man is humble. “It’s a bit part,” he is quick to say of his roles. He is also quick to admit that he misses his own bit of jungle. De Wet left his hometown of George some three years ago. It was here that his brother and fellow-actor, Rudolf, helped him on his path to stardom, filming and producing 10-15 Tarzan movies starring DeWet and a cast that included the elephant Shaka, an anaconda and monkeys. Ranging in length from 10 minutes to one hour the movies have made De Wet a bit of a cult figure.
The first in the series was made five years ago. Called Tarzan: Starring DeWet Du Toit, it has had 415,709 views. Tarzan Trailor has had 865,745 views. Tarzan VS Anaconda, Part 4 has had 73,856 views and saw him being embraced by an anaconda. Not shabby, eh. And now a new Tarzan movie is on the cards. De Wet and Rudolf are planning on making an hour long film end of this year. Tarzan Apocalypse will have a zombie theme, DeWet says. Hmm…
De Wet’s brother and fellow-actor Rudolf produced his Tarzan movies.
Why does he ride elephants, run barefoot over rocks and consent to being suffocated by a gigantic reptile while someone comments laconically, “As long as he doesn’t bite you.” It’s a no-brainer. DeWet’s passion for the character of Tarzan has shaped his life, and transformed him from a security guard to a regular on film sets. He has appeared on e.tv, Youmagazinetv, and in various international documentaries including one made by Japanese television. He’s making a living in movies in this tough economic climate and he hopes to head for Hollywood next year. “It’s the Mecca of movies after all,” he says.
