August 2012
14 posts
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Jesse discusses his character in "Why Stop Now"
Collider: Could you identify with the aspect of this character having a talent and passion, but not quite having the belief that he could live his dream?
JESSE: Yeah, exactly. That’s what’s driving him. He has this great ability and, at the same time, this great feeling of worthlessness that comes from having a troubled situation and the guilt that accompanies being great at something, in a situation that doesn’t always encourage you to be comfortable with that. That’s a sad rut to be stuck in, but is a really great story because it really centers on this guy figuring out that he’s good at this thing, and that’s okay. All these terrible personal circumstances can be separate. I see that all the time. Working in the arts, you see people who come from terrible circumstances and who, for whatever reason, have this incredible talent. But of course, with that great talent comes some guilt because, if you come from circumstances that don’t encourage it, it can be really confusing.
Collider: What were the biggest challenges in playing someone who is trying to be disciplined while living in such a chaotic lifestyle?
JESSE: He is that kind of a kid who had to grow up too quickly because his mom is not responsible, even though she’s a loving mother. He’s had to be her parent, in a way, and engineer her life while he’s trying to pursue his own goals and dreams. That’s just too much of a burden for a person. The story takes place mostly in a day, and it’s just this awful day where he’s both trying to do the greatest thing in his life, and dealing with the worst thing in his life. But, he has a good and constructive attitude, so the movie ends up being funny and sarcastic because he’s able to have this flustered reaction to all of it.
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Collider: What attracted you to Now You See Me, and what was it like to work with Louis Leterrier?
JESSE: It’s a really unique movie. The cast was huge and, for each character, they cast these incredible actors. It was a surreal experience. Every day, there was somebody really interesting coming in. It was a really fun time. I played the world’s greatest mind magician. He’s able to manipulate people through these very elaborate tricks. It was such a creative experience because the filmmakers created these very elaborate tricks that were interwoven into this complicated plot where the FBI is trying to figure out how they’re doing it. So, on the one hand, you’re seeing these incredible things, as an audience, in the same way that an audience would be watching these magicians. And then, on the other hand, you’re trying to figure it out from the perspective of the FBI. It was a really interesting process.
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Collider: What was it like to work with Richard Ayoade on The Double? Submarine had such a very unique style. How would you describe this film and its visual style?
JESSE: They built an entire world for the movie. Every set was built. They basically built an entire city. It’s incredible! So, the style is so unique. It’s a funny movie, but it’s very dark and terrifying. This character that I play, his life is overtaken by his doppleganger, so he’s struggling for not only his identity, but his life. The style of it is so consistently dystopian that I think it will be just fantastic. It was really a weird world to inhabit, as an actor, and I imagine that, as an audience it will be as well because you won’t see the camera and it won’t take you out of it, like it did for me.
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“She is obviously, you know, wonderful. The tone of the movie we’re doing...”
– Jesse Eisenberg on Mia Wasikowska, his co-star in The Double
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Jesse Eisenberg is ‘like a rock’ for Morgan →
Interviewer: [Tracy Morgan] once told a Metro employee that he wanted to put a baby in her. Jesse: He came up to me every day behind my head, an inch from my ear and sang that song — well, it’s a song but it’s also made currently famous by the Chevy commercial — [Bob Seger’s] “Like a Rock.” He just sings that in a very loud way beside my head every day at 5 in the morning. But when he’s...
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“It’s like just because the adults thought it was a great idea, we would too. But...”
– Jesse Eisenberg, “Bream Gives Me Hiccups: Restaurant Reviews from a Privileged Nine-Year-Old — Robert Frost Elementary School Cafeteria”
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Jesse Eisenberg On 'Why Stop Now,' Writing Plays &...
Jesse Eisenberg isn’t like typical celebrities. For starters, he makes his own phone calls. “Hi, this is Jesse,” Eisenberg said as normal as humanly possible when HuffPost Entertainment answered the actor’s call earlier this week. Eisenberg was phoning from England to discuss the indie comedy “Why Stop Now,” in which he co-stars opposite Oscar winner Melissa Leo. “It seemed like such an ideal...
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“The thing that leaps to my mind about that less-than-a-month last summer: Jesse...”
– Melissa Leo on her working relationship with Jesse Eisenberg in Why Stop Now
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“Jesse was one of the most pleasurable actors to work with that I’ve ever...”
– Melissa Leo, on working with Jesse in Why Stop Now (x)
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Richard Ayoade on 'The Double'
Interviewer: Speaking of auteurship, how’s work on your next film, The Double?
Richard Ayoade: I'm so kind of impressed and thrilled by Jesse [Eisenberg] and Mia [Wasikowska]. I knew they were terrific actors, but to see them actually do it was just a great thrill. If I haven't really screwed up, they should be really terrific. In fact, they're so good, I don't think I can prevent them from being terrific.
Interviewer: So, you didn’t hold a stopwatch to Jesse Eisenberg and make him do 99 takes again? [I.e., like David Fincher did to him for The Social Network.]
Richard Ayoade: Well, we did quite a lot of takes. But they're so good you don't want them to stop … It's going great. We have three days left of filming and Jesse and Mia are just terrific. I kind of can't believe I captured them in a moment of weakness where they agreed to be in it. I'm looking forward to starting editing.
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“I know that I want to be more like Matthew and TCBY because when you say you’re...”
– Bream Gives Me Hiccups: Restaurant Reviews From a Privileged Nine-year-old: TCBY by Jesse Eisenberg (via cookiestome) 