<P> Dinklage found his breakthrough playing Finbar McBride, who is a quiet, withdrawn, unmarried man in the 2003 Tom McCarthy - directed film The Station Agent . According to co-star Bobby Cannavale, the film took three years to make and was not at first written with Dinklage in mind, Cannavale said McCarthy "set out to tell a story about a guy who was a train enthusiast who had chosen to isolate himself from the world," but when McCarthy actually started "putting pen to paper" for the screenplay he decided to write the role for him . Speaking about the role, Dinklage noted that usually "roles written for someone my size are a little flat"--often either comical or "sort of Lord of the Rings" type characters filled with wisdom; further: "They're not sexual, they're not romantic" and "they're not flawed ." What attracted him to the character McCarthy had written was that it was not one of the stereotypical roles people with dwarfism play; rather, McBride has "romantic feelings" as well as "anger and...flaws ." The role earned him the Independent Spirit Award and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actor nominations . In the New York Observer, reviewer Andrew Sarris wrote, "Dinklage projects both size and intelligence in the fascinating reticence of his face ." Besides being Dinklage's highest - rated film on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, The Station Agent was modestly successful at the box office, earning over $8 million against its small budget . </P> <P> Dinklage later appeared in the direct - to - DVD film Tiptoes (2003) with Gary Oldman and Matthew McConaughey . The film met with negative reviews, particularly Oldman's role as a person with dwarfism . According to Dinklage, the original cut of the film was "gorgeous," but the director was fired shortly after turning it in, and the film was re-cut into a "rom - com with dwarves ." Speaking on the Oldman controversy, Dinklage said, "There was some flak: Why would you put Gary Oldman on his knees? That's almost like blackface . And I have my own opinions about political correctness, but I was just like, It's Gary Oldman . He can do whatever he wants, and I'm so happy to be here ." </P> <P> That year, Dinklage also starred in several Off - Broadway productions, such as Richard III . Dinklage appeared in the Christmas comedy film Elf as Miles Finch, an irritable children's author who beats up Buddy Hobbs (Will Ferrell) after he mistakes him for an elf . In 2005, he starred in the short - lived CBS science fiction series Threshold and appeared as a wedding planner in the comedy film The Baxter . He also made an appearance in the adventure comedy - drama Lassie as a traveling circus performer . The film received highly positive reviews, though it did not fare well at the box office . </P> <P> In 2006, Dinklage co-starred with Vin Diesel in Find Me Guilty, a courtroom drama directed by Sidney Lumet . The film tells the true story of the longest Mafia trial in American history; Dinklage played Ben Klandis, the lead defense attorney . Critical reaction to the film was mostly positive, though it was a commercial failure . Writing for Chicago Sun - Times, film critic Roger Ebert praised Dinklage's performance, saying that the character he plays stands apart as "concise, articulate and professional ." The same year, he portrayed the character Marlowe Sawyer in episodes of Nip / Tuck . He played a fictionalized version of himself in an episode of the HBO series Entourage and appeared in NBC's 30 Rock as Stewart . The same year, Dinklage appeared in the British romantic comedy Penelope playing Lemon, a tabloid reporter . The film received mixed reviews from critics . </P>

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