THE MIGHTY, THE MAGNIFICENT, VIGGO MORTENSEN!
TOTSD SHOW.
HI VIGGO HOW ARE YOU?
>> I'M GOOD HOW ARE YOU?
>> James: I'M VERY WELL.
YOU'RE JOINING US, THANKS FOR BEING WITH US TONIGHT.
YOU'RE JOINING US FROM MADRID IN SPAIN.
I READ YOU HAVE BEEN DOING SOMETHING THAT I MISS GREATLY.
YOU GO TO THE THEATER AND THE CINEMA.
HOW ARE YOU DOING THIS AND WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?
>> WELL, WHEN I SAY, YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN TO LIKE LAST WEEK I
SAW A MOVIE A COUPLE OF PLAYS, YOU ARE SAYING THEY SHOULDN'T BE
DOING THAT.
THEY WORKED REALLY HARD STARTING LAST AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, YOU
KNOW, IT WASN'T JUST THE FACT THAT IF YOU WEAR MASKS AND
OBSERVE SOCIAL DISTANCING AND ALL THOSE THINGS AND ARE
CAREFUL, IT'S NOT THAT YOU CAN MAYBE AVOID GITTING SICK OR
DYING, OR GETTING SOMEONE ELSE SICK, THERE ARE OTHER BENEFITS,
TO DOING THE RIGHT THING WHICH IS YOU CAN GO TO THE MOVIES.
SINCE THAT TIME ON AND OFF WITH SOME SHUT DOWN, SOME CURFEWS AND
SO FORTH IN DIFFERENT REGIONS OF THE COUNTRY PEOPLE HAVE BEENING
GOING.
I'VE BEEN GOING TO THE MOVIES FOR MONTHS.
YOU GO WITH MASKS ON, KEEP YOUR DISTANCING, THERE'S BEEN NO
INFECTIONS OUTBREAKS FROM MOVIE THEATERS OR PEOPLE GOING TO SEE
PLAYS.
SO THAT IS OF BENEFIT.
IT'S AN INCENTIVE TO DOING THE RIGHT THING.
SO I THINK THAT THAT CAN HAPPEN IN THE UNITED STATES TOO BUT
EVERYBODY NEEDS TO GET ON THE SAME PAGE OBVIOUSLY.
>> James: I'M SURE THAT WILL BE PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD.
(LAUGHTER) NOW THAT YOU'VE SET IT, I THINK
THE ENTIRE POPULATION OF 300 MILLION PEOPLE WILL JUST GO OH,
I GOT IT, YEAH JUST, SORRY WHAT YOU'RE TALKING IS, LOOK AFTER
EACH OTHER, WOW THAT'S INCREDIBLE.
>> WHAT A CONCEPT!
>> James: WHAT A CONCEPT.
OBVIOUSLY YOUR BIG BREAK WAS LORD OF THE RINGS FILMS.
YOU WERE 40 WHEN YOU MADE THAT TRILOGY.
WHAT WAS YOUR EARLY CAREER LIKE BEFORE THAT MOVIE KIND OF
CHANGED EVERYTHING?
>> IT TOOK ME A LONG TIME TO HAVE A CAREER AS AN ACTOR.
NOT ALL THAT MANY SUPREME OVERNIGHT SUCCESS AS AN ACTOR.
IT TOOK ME A LOT OF TIME THE OMAKE THAT JOB, I TOOK A LOT OF
ODD JOBS, MOVING FURNITURE, SELLING ICE CREAM, WHATEVER.
I JUST GOT SMALL PARTS, NEVER GOT A BIG PART FOR MANY YEARS.
AND I USED TO GET VERY NERVOUS.
WHEN I WAS IN THE WAITING ROOM, YOU'RE SITTING THERE WITH OTHER
GUYS THAT ARE YOUR AGE AND YOU KNOW THEY'RE YOUR COMPETITION.
AND MY AUTOMATIC WAY OF DEALING WITH IT I GUESS WAS THAT I WOULD
JUST FALL ASLEEP.
IF I WAS REALLY NERVOUS WOULD I SLEEP SO I WOULDN'T BE STREFD.
AND THEN -- STRESSED AND MAYBE --
>> James: WITH THE OTHER ACTORS YOU WOULD JUST HAVE A
NAP?
>> I WOULD JUST DOZE OFF SNORING AWAY AND SOMEBODY WOULD COME AND
WAKE ME UP WHEN IT WAS REPLY TURN.
I FOUND OUT SOMETIME LATER THAT I'D GOTTEN A REPUTATION FOR
BEING A STONER OR WHATEVER.
I'D FULLY WAKE UP WHENEVER THE AUDITION WAS OVER.
I WAS KIND OF GROGGY.
HE FELT LIKE SLEEBY MORTENSEN, HE'S PROBABLY SMOKING TOO MUCH
WEED OR WHATEVER.
YEARS LATER I RAN INTO ONE OF THE GUYS THAT WAS ALWAYS THE
COMPETITION.
HE GOT MANY FS ROLES.
HE SAID, YOU DID THIS AWFUL THING TO US, YOU CAN.
>> Dan: THIS PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE, AND I SAID NO, THAT'S
HOW I COPED, I JUST FELL ASLEEP.
>> James: I'M NOT SURPRISED IF YOU DID RG HERE, EVEN GROUND
LENSES.
EXPLAIN WHAT THE MOVIE IS ABOUT?
>> WELL, THERE'S THE FATHER, 80 YEARS OLD, I PLAY THE SON, LANS
HENDERSON REMARKABLE, REMARKABLE JOB, STAND THE TEST OF TIME.
GO DOWN IN HISTORY.
IT'S STRANGE I'D SAY, THEY ARE VERY DIFFERENT IDEOLOGICALLY.
BE THE FATHER LIVES ALONE, ON THE FARM WHERE MY CHARACTER GREW
UP AND HE IS A HARD PERSON FOR ANYONE TO DEAL WITH, HE JUST
SAYS ANYTHING THAT COMMENTS INTO HIS HEAD, MANY TIMES IT'S THE
HOMOPHOBIC, RACIST, MISOGYNIST.
GLEEFULLY.
HE'S IN THE EARLY STAGES OF DEMENTIA.
TRYING TO FIND SOME EMPATHY.
DIFFICULT PERSON TO DEAL WITH.
AND IT WAS INSPIRED, MY FATHER WASN'T LIKE THAT, REALLY,
ALTHOUGH HE WAS A PERSON OF HIS GENERATION, KIND OF INFLEXIBLE
IN SOME WAYS BUT NOT LIKE THIS CHARACTER.
IT WAS AFTER MY MOM'S FUNERAL AND SHE HAD HAD DEMENTIA LIKE
THE CHARACTER IN THE MOVIE DOES.
MY DAD DID, TOO.
AND THAT'S ONE ASPECT OF IT.
BUT I GUESS I WAS JUST TRYING TO REMEMBER THINGS ABOUT MY MOM
AFTER SHE DIED.
IMAGES OF HER, STORIES ABOUT HER.
I WANTED TO SORT OF KEEP THAT MEMORY ALIVE BECAUSE I LOVED HER
AND STILL MOVE HER.
I GUESS WRITING THIS STORY IT'S A FICTION BUT IT'S BASED ON
THOSE FEELINGS ABOUT HER PRIMARILY, WAS A WAY TO KEEP HER
MEMORY ALIVE, WRITING IT INTO A STORY AND TRYING TO GET IT MADE
INTO A MOVIE AND EVEN UNTIL NOW SHOWING IT TO PEOPLE AND TALKING
ABOUT IT.
AND IT'S A WAY OF REMEMBERING MY MOTHER I SUPPOSE.