Willem Dafoe hallucination. The cameo was suggested by Dafoe, comparing it to the ghost of Hamlet's father visiting his son to ask him to avenge his death. Dafoe was next seen in the comedy-drama "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (2004), his first of three films with director Wes Anderson. He played the "hilariously doltish" German first mate of a research vessel owned by the eponymous lead character, who is played by Bill Murray. Dafoe then had a small role as a tabloid magazine editor in Martin Scorsese's "The Aviator" (2004), a biographical film about Howard Hughes starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Also in
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou venture has hit a decline; they have not released a successful documentary in nine years. Ned Plimpton is a longtime Zissou fan whose mother had recently died, and he believes that Zissou is his father. After they meet at Zissou's latest premiere, Ned takes leave from his job as an airline pilot in Kentucky to join his crew. As Oseary Drakoulias, Zissou's producer, can not find anyone to finance their latest documentary, Ned offers his inheritance. Eleanor feels her husband is taking advantage of Ned and leaves. A pregnant reporter, Jane Winslett-Richardson, comes to chronicle the voyage. Both Ned and