When we were castingThe Prestige, we had gotten very stuck on the character of Nikola Tesla.
He had that requisite iconic status, and he was a figure as mysterious as Tesla needed to be.
It took me a while to convince him, thoughhe turned down the part the first time.
Credit: Francois Duhamel
It was the only time I can ever remember trying again with an actor who passed on me.
I petitioned to let me explain why he was the right actor for it.
I would say I begged him.
GALLERY:David Bowies Life in Pictures
The experience of having him on set was wonderful.
Daunting, at first.
He had a level of charisma beyond what you normally experience, and everyone really responded to it.
Ive never seen a crew respond to any movie star that way, no matter how big.
But he was very gracious and understood the effect he had on people.
Everyone has fond memories of getting to spend time with him or speak to him for a little bit.
But not with David Bowie.
I thought that was quite magical.
