I had a cold that I couldnt shake, he says.
I got on a plane to Berlin a week or two ago and thought I was healthy again.
And then I woke up and was like, What the f?
Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
The 41-year-old Australian has always been one of the movie industrys most human actors.
Exactly where he likes it.
And thats part of the reason hes excited aboutMidnight Special, the sublime supernatural thriller byTake Shelterdirector Jeff Nichols.
While shootingLovinglast summer,The Giftopened in theaters and became one of 2015s sleeper hits.
And then I said, Now, listen to me as I tell you what to do!
Such is the gratifyingly mysterious way that the films story has been carefully doled out.
And Edgerton, as an audience member, wouldnt have it any other way.
(Very minor spoilers about the plot ofMidnight Specialfollow.)
ENTERAINMENT WEEKLY: Congratulations, first of all, on the success ofThe Gift.
It was great to see you nominated for the newDirectors Guild award for best first film.
JOEL EDGERTON:Yeah, thanks.
I was so thrilled that the film got recognized.
Its really your cup of tea.
But also theres the austerity with which Jeff Nichols makes movies.
Hes very classic in his structure and form.
That appeals to me and the people who I work with.
Because theres something classic about their movies.
You knew his work before you met him?
And when I met him for the first time, just down the roadMudwas playing.
The day before, Id gone to the cinema to see it, actually.
Did he approach you with the idea of you playing this character, named Lucas?
And I think that also includes casting.
So, yeah, he was coming to me specifically to talk about this role.
He gave me the script, and it was a no-brainer.Midnight Specialis a page-turner in the truest sense.
Theres a new mystery every couple minutes.
And a new question asked and sometimes a part of an answer given.
You know youre hardly in the trailers for it.
The movies a delectable collection of mysteries.
Thats what also makes it tricky to talk about.
I think its about 45 minutes actually.
Or maybe it is an hour.
Jeff doesnt like throwing out exposition in his movies.
I love being an audience member for a movie like that.
Its a great supporting role, in the purest sense.
Right, not only for me as an actor, but in the way I support the other characters.
And he has a choice, unlike some of the others.
I love that theres no flashbacks in the film.
Something has led Lucas to the point at which the film begins.
How much did you think about Lucas backstory?
Jeff made very clear points to me, but he was also flexible.
I have these grubby pants.
And also, without overstating it, theres a conscious reason why Roy came to Lucas.
Roy knows hes a cop; he knows hes going to have weapons and armored vests.
Roy didnt go see some buddy whos ended up in IT or something.
You seem like you love to explore duality in men.
I mean,The Giftis for sure about that.
AlsoBlack Mass,Animal Kingdom.
InGatsby, you created the best Tom Buchanan ever on film.
That comes in here, too.
Is this a good guy?
What is he hiding?
Why is he with this family?
Well, everybody is a bag of actions, right?
That I found fascinating.
Jeff Nichols is making his first studio film.
As a director yourself, do you think hes under added pressure to haveMidnight Specialbe a success?
We struck a little bit of gold, in a way.
But the risk is that the artist part of your brain starts to get infused with the business part.
And my concern is that artists then start to second-guess what kind of stuff they should make.
Thats a huge pitfall, especially now.
But Jeffs not that guy.
Yeah, its a studio film, but its still got all the DNA of his own personal style.
It doesnt seem compromised, thats true.
No, and Jeff wont compromise.
Go do it somewhere else or rethink what the plan was.
Have you seen any ofLovingyet?
No, Im going to see it next week.
There was a little feeding frenzy in Berlin, when a few minutes of the film was shown.
And it got sold to Focus, which was nice.
Ive never seen Jeff so happy about a movie.
Im terrified to see myself in it, but I think its going to be really special.
Its exciting that hell have two films out in the same year.
And also, Jeff grows in strength as his team grows in strength.
Chad Keith, his production designer.
Adam Stone, his cinematographer.
Theyve all done every movie with him.
And Adam Stones work onMidnight Special
Oh, god.
Thats what I mean about everyone around Jeff growing in strength.
Adam Stones work onMidnight Specialcouldnt be better.
And Michael Shannon has said he doesnt ever want to be left out from a Jeff Nichols movie.
Yeah, at this point, Id pretty much agree to be a potted plant in the next one.
Or a bowl of food, if Jeff wants me for that.
I just want to stay part of the family.
Youd be willing to play a tomato?
I realized that we actors are so powerless.
Weve run off to some other movie set.
Or sometimes it falls short, but we cant do anything about that.
But with Jeff, I felt pretty confident that he was going to land in the target.
And thats sort of the long game, right?
Youve talked about Gene Hackman as someone you hope to emulate.
What separates us from athletes is that we dont have to retire at 30.
Theres an audience for us so long as out brains keep going.
We can keep transitioning.
And thinking about the transitions shes made, its amazing.
Its difficult for some actors.
But that gets complicated with typecasting.
Particularly if youre a young man whos only been a heroic actor.
Then all of the sudden you get criticized for aging, but f man, human beings age.
That is what we do.
It seems like youre really hitting that stride right now.
And audiences saw the real person, not the square jawline or perfect abs.
