Back To One

If you didn't know Imogen Poots was British, it is understandable. Few young actors transform so chameleon-like, role-to-role, applying accents so skillfully. I was first wowed by her in Peter Bogdanovich's "She's Funny That Way" and then I actually didn't even know it was her in "Green Room" until I saw the credits. She floored me again in "Frank and Lola" opposite Michael Shannon, in an entirely different kind of role. Now she plays a drifter with questionable parenting skills, who steers into escalating trouble in “Mobile Homes,” and by the end of the movie her performance wrecked me. In this half hour she lifts the hood on her craft and we get to peek in. (“Mobile Homes” is out now on VOD and digital)

Ethan Hawke's "staying power" is grounded in hard work. He survived being the poster child of Generation X ("Reality Bites"), and thrived as Richard Linklater's go-to actor ("The Before Trilogy," "Boyhood") and always returns to the true home of the actor--the theater (he's currently starring in "True West" on Broadway). Now he has delivered one of the most critically acclaimed performances of the year in Paul Schrader's "First Reformed." He generously shares the wisdom and knowledge he's acquired over the years as an actor, and is extremely eloquent when doing so. In this episode, he talks about the importance of off-camera acting, magic vs. rehearsal, not being seduced by laughter, and lots more. 

He’s perhaps best known for his portrayal of Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish on “Game of Thrones” but I first took note of the uniquely talented Aidan Gillen as Mayor Carcetti on “The Wire.” The Dublin native’s most recent role was the manager of Queen in “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Now he stars in the period UFO drama “Project Blue Book,” which premieres January 8th on History. In this half hour he talks about his intuition-based approach to preparation, how Jez Butterworth introduced him to the work of John Cassavetes, and I toss a name at him to spark some memories from “The Wire.”

Joanna Kulig’s performance in “Cold War” is so astonishingly captivating and commanding and downright brilliant, that it feels like a classic performance delivered by an immortal screen goddess from the golden age of film. Pawel Pawlikowski’s penetrating black and white and impeccable direction helps, but this Polish masterpiece, short-listed for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, is impossible to imagine without Kulig. In this half hour she talks about how her music training came in handy while shooting the intricate moving camera shots in the film, and she ponders what it means when someone says she’s “so natural.”  Plus she reveals how Pawlikowski helped her often simply by saying the words “Lauren Bacall.”

Starting with her big break on “Dr. Who,” and continuing with the “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Avengers” films, Karen Gillan has grown accustomed to fervent fandom surrounding her acting work. With "The Party's Just Beginning,” (which she wrote, directed, and stars in) she stepped away from that hubbub to make a small, dark, intricately structured film in her hometown in Scotland. The movie folds out from her character through hallucinations, flashbacks and alcoholic hazes to tell the tale of her grief over her best friend’s suicide. I ask her what it was like directing a feature for the first time while taking on such an emotionally fraught role. And she tells the story of a revelation she had about her acting, early in her career, that changed everything. Plus she talks about how she turns that focused fan frenzy into fuel that energizes her work.

We're catching Alessandro Nivola at a very interesting moment in his career. A day before our talk, he was awarded Best Supporting Actor at the British Independent Film Awards for his incredible performance in “Disobedience,” and a few days before that it was announced that he will star in David Chase's “Sopranos” prequel “The Many Saints of Newark.” He talks about the benefits of having time to prepare for the role of Rabbi Dovid Kuperman and facing the challenge of delivering that important climatic speech. And how, for him, inhabiting a character often starts with the voice. Plus he confesses he stopped auditioning because he was “too scared,” and self-tape changed his career. 

Jason Manzoukos has made a living "bringing the funny" in tv shows like “The League,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “The Good Place,” and movies such as “The House,” and “The Dictator.” Now he stars in Hannah Fidell's “The Long Dumb Road” with Tony Revolori (“The Grand Budapest Hotel”). In this half hour, I send him down a rabbit hole on the evolution of comedy, he tells a great story about getting the hard truth from a casting director early in his career, and talks about when to “pitch an alt.” Plus I forbid all comedic podcast banter and he graciously complies.

James Ransone doesn’t like to talk about himself. He also doesn’t like to talk about acting. This might have been a disastrous interview except that his expressed frustration at having to speak about these things actually spawned an interesting and raw conversation about acting. I first noticed Ransone in the role of Ziggy in Season 2 of “The Wire.” He went on to star in the HBO miniseries “Generation Kill,” and in movies like “Sinister,” “Tangerine” and Spike Lee's “Oldboy” remake. This year he played an astronaut in Hulu's “The First” and he's now shooting “IT Chapter 2.” His direct, non-filtered responses to my questions (some of which he downright rejects) are bound to give you lots to ponder about this elusive and wondrous endeavor, and, if you're like me, leave you wanting to hear more from Mr. Ransone.

You recognize Eric Lange. He’s been a working actor for 20+ years, with extensive theater work and a long list of television and film credits ("Narcos," "Lost," "Weeds," "The Bridge," to name a few recent ones). For "Escape at Dannemora" (directed by Ben Stiller), he gained 40 pounds to play Lyle, husband of Patricia Arquette's character, in the Showtime limited series based on the real-life prison break. He tells a wonderful, "outside-in" tale of finding a way into Lyle through some magic teeth, and waxes about the “getting paid to wait” life of acting for the camera.

Simone Missick is best known for playing Misty Knight in the Netflix/Marvel series "Luke Cage" (as well in "The Defenders" and "Iron Fist"). She tells a great story of getting that part, and her game plan for auditioning in general, and also talks about knowing when to offer script changes, even for Marvel material! Then we talk about her important new film "JINN", about a teenager torn between her burgeoning sexuality and her mother's newfound Muslim faith. "JINN" is now available on VOD and Digital.

Melissa Leo has acquired a lot of acting wisdom. On this episode, she graciously shares some. She was nominated for an Academy Award for her incredible performance in "Frozen River," and won one for playing Alice Ward in "The Fighter." Recent notable performances can be found in “Francine," "The Most Hated Woman In America," and her latest, "Unlovable," where she plays opposite Charlene deGuzman, who co-wrote the script based on her real-life experiences in a program for sex and love addiction. Leo talks lovingly about that production, and about how she sometimes gleans more substantial info from a dolly grip than a director. Plus she issues this warning - "Don't lie to an actor." 

With over one hundred films in his legendary career filled with versatile, bold, and iconic performances, Willem Dafoe is one of the most respected actors of our time. His artistic curiosity in exploring the human condition leads him to projects all over the world, giant Hollywood movies as well as small Independent films. In this episode he talks about inhabiting Vincent van Gogh through the act of painting for his latest film, "At Eternity's Gate," and how being part of a strong director's vision is actually freeing. Plus I try to get him to talk a bit about the nuts and bolts of his craft.

From her breakthrough in “Kick-Ass” through great roles in “Let Me In,” “Hugo,” and “Carrie,” Chloë Grace Moretz has become one of the hottest young actors in Hollywood. In this half hour, she talks about her recent decision to take time to “reassess who I am and find myself within my roles again,” which led to her brilliant performance in “The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” this year’s winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance (now streaming on demand). She also talks about avoiding what she calls “emotional cavities,” and how she craves to be taken off guard in her performances. 

With riveting performances in films such as "Hell or High Water," "The Messenger" and "3:10 to Yuma," Ben Foster established himself as an intensely serious actor who goes all-in for a role. With this year's “Leave No Trace,” Foster takes that same intensity and brilliantly turns it inward, portraying a laconic veteran who suffers from PTSD and survives in the woods of Oregon with his teenage daughter, played by Thomasin McKenzie. Foster talks about working with McKensie to establish the connection they needed, why he took performance enhancing drugs to play Lance Armstrong, and the “emotional erectile disfunction” of over-directing.

Elsie Fisher was not just some 13-year-old Bo Burnham plucked from Middle America to star in his debut feature “Eighth Grade.” She has been a working child actor in Hollywood since infancy. She did, however, just finish eighth grade in public school when filming began, and she managed to create a performance so vulnerable and true that the seams of the acting craft are invisible. In this half-hour, I attempt to get Fisher and Burnham to open up about the origins of this movie and how this young lady carried it so successfully that it just might be the performance of the year.

Jim Cummings' performance in the Sundance winning, one-shot short film "Thunder Road" was the talk of the indie film world in 2016. And then he turned it into a feature, and it won the Grand Jury Prize at the SXSW Film Festival. Now Cummings has decided to turn down the less than thrilling distribution offers and make the risky decision to distribute "Thunder Road" himself. It was the right move. The film has not even hit American screens yet and it has already made its money back and more. He talks to me about “performing” the script into existence, mastering the long take, and his passion for demystifying the idea of making movies, and inspiring people to follow him and make and distribute their own. Now.

It’s difficult, right now, to find the words “Kayli Carter” without the word “breakthrough” nearby. The adjective refers to her brilliant performance in Tamara Jenkins’ PRIVATE LIFE, in which Carter unflappably shines next to her more seasoned co-stars Kathryn Hahn and Paul Giamatti. She talks about the chemistry she had with those three, and about her formative experience with Mark Rylance in the play “Nice Fish” (including a 60 minute audition!), plus how she’s perfectly fine with passing on parts that do not depict young women as fully formed characters.

Kathryn Hahn has joked about her plethora of “best friend or randy crazy lady” roles in comedies like “How To Lose A Guy In Ten Days,” “Anchorman” and “Step Brothers.” But recent projects by Jill Soloway (“Afternoon Delight” and “I Love Dick”) and Tamara Jenkins (the new Netflix film “Private Life”) have cast Hahn in the lead role, and suddenly we have an exciting leading lady who’s much more than a scene-stealer-extraordinaire. She lets us in on a fascinating process she has for getting into the “I” of the character, talks about the road that led to “Private Life” with co-stars Paul Giamatti and Kayli Carter, and cites the Alan Watts quote “You’re under no obligation to be the person you were five minutes ago.”

When Nicolette Robinson made her Broadway debut in September, taking over the lead role of Jenna in “Waitress,” she was not just fond of Sara Bareilles’ hit musical, she had been listening to the cast album cathartically as she went through emotional ups and downs in her own life. This might be part of why I found her “Jenna” so connected to the material, so alive. We talk about what led up to that Broadway debut night, stepping through the complex engulfing that is “Hamilton” (her husband Leslie Odom Jr. won a Tony for the musical), and what her inner actor needs before that curtain rises. (Robinson’s limited run in “Waitress” is through October 28)

The hilarious Taran Killam lets us peek under the hood of his comedic craft in this half hour. He stars in the new ABC series “Single Parents” (premiering September 26th) and the comedy “Night School” (opening September 28th) opposite Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish. He’s probably best known for his 6 years on Saturday Night Live. We talk about how that “bootcamp” prepared him for almost anything. But his talent goes beyond comedy. He writes, directs (check out his film “Killing Gunther” on demand), and sings (he was King George III in “Hamilton”). Plus he finally answers a question I have been trying to ask comedic actors since this show began.