Aaron Eckhart embodies Frankenstein still alive, 200 years after being created
With a much more sensual version of Frankenstein, without screws and better physique, in the style of the best superheroes, Aaron Eckhart brings to the cinema the new movie 'I, Frankenstein' with monstrous special effects and a character that shows him 200 years after the story that we all know... more alive than ever.
P. One of the most famous qualities of Frankenstein is that he is not afraid of anything. Is he the same in your case?
R. Let's see... What am I afraid of? I'm usually terrified of women.
P. It is unusual for an actor who worked with the most famous women in Hollywood ... and at 45 he is still single. Do you not believe in marriage at all?
R. No, it's a superpower that I have: I can continue to be single, without getting married.... (Laughs) I don't know, I never wanted to get married. Maybe one day I will and have children. But that's how I'm happy, going out and meeting more women.
Q. Did the lack of a marriage, without the pressure of having to support a family by looking for a more stable job, also help in the early days when you were just starting out as an actor?
A. Oh, yes, of course, because of the fear of not working again, of not earning enough, the rejections... Most of my friends who were good actors were never able to make a living from acting and that's scary, because you you spend it worrying about what you're going to do next. Many get married and have the classic conversation with their wives, start having children and can no longer dream, they need to go out and get a more secure job. And that always scared me.
Q. And how did those first steps turn out, in such a competitive world?
A. Well... I had taken acting classes and when I got my film degree, although everyone wanted to move to Los Angeles, I said "No, no, I'm going to New York, I want to do theater and continue studying there". It seemed to me a much more serious and hard place, but I wanted it to cost me more. And I'm glad I did, because I had such a good time.
Q. Did any actor in particular inspire you to pursue acting?
A. Yes, the first was Cary Grant, his simplicity, without any effort and his good humor, for acting so efficiently, without too much effort... And then, having grown up in the 70s, I liked everyone since (Robert) Redford to (Paul) Newman and Steve McQueen. To this day, I still like that style of cinema. I admire great actors and still aspire to be like them.
P. And what was that first step that led you to decide to be like them?
R. The first play I did when I was 14 years old. I liked it so much that I wanted to continue acting. At that age, at 14, I knew I was going to be an actor. Of course I wasn't successful for years... but it's something I was naturally inclined to.
Q. What other jobs did you have before you could make a living from acting?
R. Ah, I did everything, from making bags in a supermarket, I was also a carpenter, I painted houses. What have I not done? I worked in restaurants, I did all the kinds of jobs you hear other actors did.
P. Is it true that at first you also wanted to make a living from music, composing songs?
R. Yes, that was the first thing I wanted to do. It's what I thought it could be. Yes.
Q. And what happened? Why didn't you follow 'that' dream?
R. I was too scared, just now that we talked about it. It's such a vulnerable thing... I didn't have enough guts. There are people who want to be an actor and don't try because they don't have the guts to do it. And I didn't have the guts to be a songwriter. I didn't believe in myself enough and I'm really sorry.
Q. Does it mean that in some drawer there are secret songs that we do not know as a true creation of Dr. Frankenstein?
A. (laughs) Ah, yes, I have many songs that you never heard before. very many.
Just as Dr. Frankenstein created the most famous movie monster in a laboratory, in the same Californian city of Cupertino where Steve Jobs created the Apple monster, Aaron Eckhart was born on March 12, 1968. The father, James Conrad Eckhart, he was also engaged in computing, while mother Mary wrote children's books. And it was because of his father's job, that they lived in England for a while, around the time that Aaron had his first teenage experience with acting. At 17, he went on the road, to Australia and France, until he entered Hawaii Film University in 1988.
Oliver Stone then hired him for 'Any Given Sunday' and Steven Soderbergh gave him the great opportunity to accompany Julia Roberts at the Oscar for 'Erin Brockovich'. He was also the opposite of Jack Nicholson in 'The Pledge' and Ben Affleck in 'Paycheck', before establishing himself with his own success in 'Thank You for Smoking', with the Golden Globe nomination. In a way, he had already played another style of monster in the character of Harvey Dent and Two-Face from the Batman movie 'The Dark Knight', but now he returns with another style of scars in the new version of 'I, Frankenstein'.
P. If Frankenstein is so famous for his scars, in your case did acting leave any scars after having worked so many years in Hollywood?
A. Oh yeah, sure, sure, sure. I have many scars from trying to do something good that people don't like. Yes, definitely. There are many of those. He is like the soccer player who fails to score a goal at the last minute and it disturbs him for the rest of his life. Yes, definitely, I have many scars inside.
Q. And did you ever dress up as Frankenstein at a costume party or Halloween?
A. (Laughs) It's an interesting question... maybe when he was younger, yes, surely. I haven't dressed up in a while, because I don't have children. Costume parties always scare me because I wait until the last minute when the shops are closed and I don't go to parties like that on Halloween.
Q. What are your earliest memories of Frankenstein?
R. The first thing I remember about Frankenstein in general? I remember reading the book over and over again. And I also remember the first thing we basically all know, a Frankenstein with a square head and screws in his neck, very tall. And my version is different, because he is much more human, much more accessible, more active, he is a fighter who also thinks much more.
Q. Is Frankenstein a bad person?
R. No, no, no, not at all. On the contrary, he is a good person. The thing is, he was created by a father who completely pushed him away, but all he wants is to feel loved. He wants to be part of the society in which he lives and because of his appearance, people do not allow it. But he is very intelligent, he speaks very well and in a certain way he has his tenderness, he has sensitivity.
Frankenstein must be the character with the most movies in Hollywood, but he has never been seen like this before. Still alive, 200 years after being created, with his immortality in 'I, Frankenstein', he looks much more human, in the middle of a war against demons where he is the new superhero who can save humanity .
Q. How did you accept the challenge of interpreting a new version of Frankenstein?
R. When I read the script I thought it was great, because it is about a man who is looking for a purpose in life. And I felt like I could relate to that Frankenstein situation, which is why I wanted to make the movie.
Q. In the movie there is a phrase that says "You can only be a monster if you behave like one" Can the same phrase be applied to real life?
A. Yes, because we can control our emotions and our behavior. Yes of course. It also depends on the definition of a monster. In this case, he has his scars, he doesn't look like other people. But emotionally, being a monster today also means having a horrible personality, an uncontrolled personality. And it is what many of us also try to avoid, trying to maintain some essence of goodness in the midst of this world we live in where anyone wants to cut your throat. It is the great trick of life.
Q. And are there enough monsters in real life Hollywood?
A. I guess certain people show certain monstrous characteristics. And I also. It can happen to anyone, in those moments of too much pressure or expectations, the personality of the monster can appear very easily.
Q. Is the word monster nowadays also used as something great and very good?
A. Absolutely, but the word monster has become a synonym for the diabolical and luckily that is not the case in our film, where Adam, Frankenstein's monster is a good person who has not yet found his purpose in this life. And I guess that's his curse.
Q. Your character's name is Adam, but we always call Frankenstein Frankenstein. At least I don't remember ever hearing Adam's name...
A. There is a reference in Mary Shelley's book, but he never had a name. His father's name was Victor Frankenstein and obviously that's his last name and that's why they called him the Frankenstein Monster.
