I've read in interviews
that you talk about how you're very shy,
and for such a terrific actor, you get shy
sometimes when the attention is on you.
For example, you hate it when people sing
"Happy Birthday" to you.
Yeah, I do. (giggles)
Yeah, I actually relate to that.
I don't love-- Really?
I don't love it either.
Yeah, I don't love it either.
I don't like praise for something
that I didn't have anything to do with.
(Audience chuckles) That's not a joke.
I really do feel like people are,
♪ Happy ♪
And what do you see?
You're supposed to just stand there
and go, yes, I survived.
(audience laughs) It's so embarrassing.
So you hate it when people give you
that kind of attention.
Yeah, like when you wrap a film, they announce it.
And everyone starts clapping.
And I always, I hate it.
I always get turned bright red,
and I just get really embarrassed.
'Cause they don't do it for everyone.
They don't do it for the crew.
They don't.
So I just always feel like, really weird about it.
Right, 'cause they're singling you out, in a way
Yeah, they should sing "Happy Birthday"
to the parents, to my parents.
Yes, 'cause they're the ones that actually did something!
(Conan laughs) Exactly.
(Audience laughs) (Rooney laughs)
You're very shy, but you were, you tried bartending
for a while and it seems like,
to be a bartender, you need to really
be able to deal with a lot of strangers.
And how could you have done that?
I don't know.
One of my friends was going to the school,
and so it sounded like fun.
And so I went, and then I got my little bartending license.
And then I got a job, and I didn't realize that,
like, you know people always want
the bartender to drink with them.
And I can have like two drinks,
and then I'm just blacked out.
(Audience chuckles) Right.
And so I was like, you know,
and again, I'm very shy.
So I was just drunk and it was just bad.
(Conan laughs) (Audience laughs)
So you were just passed out behind the bar.
Maybe 45 minutes into your first--
I don't even really remember.
I was shocked because when I first saw you,
it was in "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,"
and you were so good in that
that I was convinced, because your character's Swedish,
I was convinced that you're a Swedish actress.
(chuckling) I get that sometimes.
And then I found out that you're not.
And I couldn't believe it. (Rooney giggles)
Because you really sold me on that idea,
that you're Swedish.
Do you believe it now?
I still believe it. (Rooney giggles)
I think you're Swedish and you're fooling me right now.
I also believe by watching that movie,
you kick so much ass in that movie.
That you're an amazing fighter.
They must have taught you a lot of cool stuff
for that movie.
I did, I did a lot of kickboxing,
and some jujitsu.
But I've forgot all the jujitsu.
I can't do any of that anymore.
What do you mean, you forgot it?
You just-- Like, I would learn a move
that would like put you out in five seconds.
Put me out? (Rooney giggles)
Really?
Yeah, like a move that could like, put anyone out.
And then I would get home,
and I would have already forgotten it.
So for some reason I couldn't retain the jujitsu.
You probably shouldn't tell people that.
You should just (audience laughs)
let people see the movie and think
you're just this incredible bad ass.
No, I can still hurt someone.
You can? Just not with jujitsu.
Okay, when was the last time
that you've actually used it in real life?
Have you used it at all in real life?
Your moves?
Not really.
At my best friend's wedding, one of her--
Wait a minute! (audience laughs)
I thought you were gonna say,
"I was walking down an alley."
And you're like, "Oh yeah,
"I used it at my best friend's wedding.
"I killed the priest."
(audience laughing)
It was her, now her husband,
his friend was very drunk.
And he was like trying to get me to dance.
Which is basically like being in an alley for me.
And having someone steal my purse.
He was like trying to get me to dance.
And he picked me up.
And I didn't, we had just we had just finished shooting.
I really, I don't know how it happened,
but I just like put my hands on his throat.
(Audience laughing)
I don't know how it happened.
(Audience laughs)
I just woke up and the police
were asking a lot of questions.
(audience laughs)
You know, now in the books,
"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
is based on the books by Stieg Larsen.
And in those books, your character, Elizabeth,
is a redhead.
but you guys didn't go that way in the movie so much.
Well, no, she's a redhead, but she dyes her hair black.
Right. Yes.
Which was very important to me,
'cause I was a follower of the books.
You wanted to be true to the books.
Yes.
But obviously there's no way to really depict that
in a movie, except that I had to wear a Merkin.
Do you know what a Merkin is?
Andy knows all this stuff.
Oh, I know what a Merkin is. (audience laughs)
Yeah, I do know what a Merkin is.
A Merkin is kind of a wig for down below, yes?
Yes, it's a, it's a wig for your lady bits.
(Audience laughs)
This interview is over.
(Audience laughs)
So you wore one of those for that movie?
Yeah. I mean, they didn't, they didn't ask me to,
but I'm naked so much in it.
I wanted one.
'Cause it felt like a little fur bikini.
(Audience laughs)
I'm feeling like such a perv now.
(Audience laughs)
(Conan laughs)
Tell me more about the fur bikini!
(Audience laughs)
Whee!
My God. It was really cute.
It was a cute little fur bikini.
And I had them make it strawberry blonde.
Oh, okay.
(Audience laughs)
Now is that something that you,
you give that back when you're done,
or do you-- No, I have it.
You have it?
Okay. Yeah, I have it.
Okay, that's good.
You wanna keep that. (audience laughs)
A lot of creeps on eBay!