This is your second Jerry Bruckheimer film in very quick succession …
Yes, almost one after the other.
So, you filmed this straight afterPrince Of Persia?
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Almost.
It sounded great and I said, Yeah, it sounds fantastic.
Id love to get involved.
Let me know when.
And then I discovered that they were working things out and it was going to happen pretty quickly.
And I think there was maybe a list of actors they were considering for the part.
It certainly wasnt an offer at that point.
Who knew that my third choice would work out so well?
What was it that attracted you, then?
The name, Maxim Horvath, is pretty great.
Does that sort of thing attract you?
It is not so much the name as just the quality of the characters that really make them.
He could have been called Engelbert Humperdink, it wouldnt really have mattered.
You know, he was dapper, English, posh, well dressed, elegant, sophisticated.
And we used to play this game onPrince Of Persiawhen we were in-between shots to pass the time.
Who would be playing my part ten years ago, twenty years ago, thirty years ago?
And it was always fun because it was a good test of your movie history.
Who was the hot young actor ten years ago?
Was it Johnny Depp, maybe?
Or who would have played Jakes part ten years ago, twenty years ago?
And I suddenly realised the parts couldnt have been more different.
That made it interesting.
How do you approach a villain in a film of this scale?
I think it all depends what is in the script.
The script will always indicate whats required in terms of what you are going to create.
Although there is humour in it, its more sardonic, its more ironic.
Because there were some scenes which felt very organic and kind of off the cuff.
Is there room in a blockbuster of this kind to do that?
Oh, yes, there was.
And also the fact that a lot of those scenes were verbal, it wasnt all special effects.
There were some real human scenes.
They just have moments when they are on screen at the same time.
Im thinking of Rahad Jackson inBoogie Nights…
Well, there was a lot more improvisation in that.
How does that compare withApprentice?
How much is on paper and how much do you come up with on set.
OnApprentice,there wasnt really that much.
We didnt improvise dialogue at all.
We would adjust the dialogue occasionally or cut something.
I think, if the visual action is telling the story, then you dont need to verbalise it.
You know what I mean?
You see me leave and it is the way I leave which tells the story.
Do I slam the door?
Do I pause at the door?
Do I look as if I dont want to go?
So, we would often cut stuff just to keep the story moving.
So, there wasnt much improvisation.
Whereas onBoogie Nights,there was a lot of improvisation, particularly that scene with the firecrackers.
That was so… kind of loose, you know?
Anderson told the actor who was playing Cosmo, the Chinese kid [Joe G.M.
Chan ] … his brief was, You just keep lighting the firecrackers whenever you want.
That wasnt choreographed or rehearsed in any way, so we didnt know when that was going to happen.
Its different circumstances, but the work is essentially the same.
You said in the past you enjoy the challenge of taking on different roles.
I hadnt thought about that.
Because with Rahad there were apparently more scenes that might have happened once the police arrived.
There are loads of parts where I think, Oh, I could have done with more screen time!
[laughs]
A spin-off or a sequel you would love to do?
I did a little film… Mr Alfred Molina, thank you very much.
The Sorcerers Apprentice is released on August 11th.
