In the film "Heaven Can Wait", who plays the head angel trying to help Warren Beatty find a new body?

James Mason plays the head angel in the 1978 film "Heaven Can Wait"; he tries and does, in the end, help Warren Beatty find a new body. Joe Pendleton (Beatty) is the quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams. He is killed in an auto accident. In the afterlife, Joe discovers that his guardian angel (Buck Henry) has taken him from his body prematurely. He was due many more years on earth in his original body. Unable to get his body, Joe assumes the form of greedy multi-millionaire industrialist Leo Farnsworth. As Farnsworth, Joe attempts a return to the game of football and falls in love with environmental activist Betty Logan (Julie Christie).

"Heaven Can Wait" is an American fantasy-comedy that was co-directed by Beatty and Buck Henry. It was the second film adaptation of Harry Segall's play of the same name, the first being "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" (1941).

James Mason was born in May 1909 in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England. He lived 75 years and died on July 27, 1984 in Lausanne, Switzerland. Movie commentators note that his background includes being a British stage actor and doing motion-pictures as an actor best known for his urbane characterizations. During his 50-year acting career, he played in at least 106 films. He is remembered for his acting in "Madame Bovary" (1949), "The Desert Fox" (1951), "Five Fingers" (1952), "Julius Caesar" (1953), "A Star Is Born" (1954), "North by Northwest" (1959), "Lolita" (1962), "The Boys from Brazil" (1978), and "The Verdict" (1982).