So what was it like being a 14th century Knight? 'Well (laughs), for starters you have to learn how to walk around in that armour and it's so f*****g hard (laughs louder!). I had major back pain from that and the swordplay. I'd been on a TV show before, Roar, where I used to throw swords around, but it was nothing like this. It was fun, though - you don't often get the opportunity to dress up in a kettle!' Do you have to be super-fit before maing a film like A Knight's Tale? 'Yeah, you do. I generally am anyway. I like to go intoprojects fit and healthy, and come out unhealthy and fat (laughs). By the time you finish filming, you're just like, "Get me out of here!'" How are you dealing with the buzz and hype that surrounds you right now? 'I guess I just don't take it all too seriously because it's not, that's all. And I find it all very funny too. I find comedy in a lot of situations that a lot of people would find stress in - that takes the stress away. And it's best to just do that with any situation, but you know it's as I've said before, yin and yang. You have the goods and you have the bads and it's just the same as before except the yin and yang are intensified.' So, what are the bads? 'Just all the s**t of, you know, being hassled and the business side. All of a sudden you're a business and a corporation, not just an actor getting up on a stage. I didn't train for that, you know? So there's all those things. But I don't find it that difficult yet, I guess! It's just all very new, and pretty crazy.' And having to look at your face all over town? 'Yeah, when I saw that I was like "Woah!" because, you know, the movie is an ensemble movie and I would rather have everyone up there than just my mug. And that's where you start to feel like a product, because studios or people will grab hold of that and see sale-ability.' You used to be into photography and surfing. Do you still get to do both of them? 'Photography, yes. I've been doing that for about six years now. But I haven't had a chance to surf in about 18 months. I've been flat out!' You're in a position where you now get to choose who you work with, so who, ideally, would it be? ''Oh, that's such a tough question. There are so many, but I really love Johnny Depp. I mean, he's brilliant and, beyond that there's, like, too many.' Did Mel Gibson pass on any tips during The Patriot? 'Um yeah, absolutely. You learn alot from working with people like that, you know? And it's purely through observation. It's not like he sits you down and says, "Okay, now this is how you deal with this situation, this is how you deal with the press, this is how you deal with your life." There's nothing that he would sit you down and teach, but if you're willing to learn, you will learn through observation.' And finally, do you have a motto that you live by? 'I do but I'm so sick of saying it. I'll give you part of it and that's, 'Dance as if no one is watching.' That's part of it....' |
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