OK, let’s talk a little bit more career angle. You were there at the start of Nicolas Cage being “Nicolas Cage”. Were you aware that he was going to use the voice of Pokey, Gumby’s horse, as his vocal inspiration? And what did you think of working opposite that in Peggy Sue Got Married?
I hated that. I absolutely hated that. Some of that was Nic acting out against Francis (Ford Coppola). He didn’t want anyone to think that he got the role because he was Francis’ nephew. And so he spent a lot of energy trying to prove that he got the role on his own by being overly inventive and as outrageous as he could be. A lot of which was unnecessary.
There’s a scene (in Dumb and Dumber To) where you whisper in Harry and Lloyd’s ear what…
What sex is [laughs].
Did you actually explain it to Jim and Jeff, or were you really just whispering broccoli recipes?
No, I was explaining certain possibilities within sexuality, yes…
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“I heard that George Lucas stepped in and told (Lawrence) Kasdan that I was the one.”
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Any tips from Body Heat?
Well, I am of an age to have a certain amount of experience now.Â
Body Heat was one of the all-time great acting debuts…
When they first started auditions in New York, I wasn’t allowed into the room because I had no film credits. So about three of four months later, they flew me out to Los Angeles to audition for another film. Wally Nacita, who was casting Body Heat in Los Angeles, heard I was in town so he asked if I’d be interested in auditioning. I went through the whole process and all the producers got together, but years later, I heard that George Lucas stepped in and told (Lawrence) Kasdan that I was the one.
I sent George a little cocktail napkin note that said, “Thank you.” But it was very different then. 30 some years ago studios took risks on new talent. This doesn’t happen anymore.
Actors are groomed so far in advance with small roles, I do miss the “introducing” credit from older films for a large role…
Because filmmaking now is only about money. How much money do you risk? How much do you get to hold? So unproven actors is bad business.
Well, that speaks to a larger shift in the industry — especially with comedy — toward international sales. Jokes and wordplay don’t translate well but slapstick body humor and explosions are universal —
Yeah, if you watch with subtitles the laughs come two beats later and you’re always playing catch up. It’s less thought-based.
Which makes me think of you saying comedy is getting meaner… if comedy is presented more action-based, a series of scenarios with physical humor it’s easier to be mean to your characters.
It’s true. I like your train of thought.
Like I said I re-watched Dumb and Dumber yesterday and I remembered it incorrectly, I mostly thought of you know wild Jim Carrey body theatrics, but Dumb and Dumber isn’t slapstick, almost all the jokes are written and written well…
You’re right. My daughter loved the original and so this was important for me and she liked this one, too. It was an important movie for her generation, so that’s why I did it. It had longevity.Â
