The last time Amy Ryan worked with a famous actor-turned-novice director, she earned an Oscar nomination for her role as the working-class mother of a missing child in Ben Affleck’s 2008 film “Gone, Baby, Gone.”
In the new romantic drama “Jack Goes Boating,” she and Oscar-winning actor and first-time director Philip Seymour Hoffman play a couple of socially withdrawn, emotionally scarred New Yorkers who fall in love.
It isn’t the first time the real-life friends have worked together -- they’ve known each other since their early days as struggling theater actors, and Ryan also had small roles in the films “Capote” and “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead” (both of which starred Hoffman) -- but the 40-year-old actress admits she relished the opportunity to finally go “head-to-head” with him on screen.
Q. Was Philip Seymour Hoffman's participation the only reason you really needed to sign on for this project?
A. In a word, yes. I was over the moon when he first offered it to me about a year ago. Originally, he was just planning to direct it. Since this was his first time directing, he didn’t want to wear both hats by acting in it, too. We only had a brief window of opportunity to shoot it, and by the time everything came together, the other actors he’d talked to about playing Jack weren’t available.
Q. Is there anything different about working for a first-time director? Did his experience as an actor somehow inform his work as a director?
A. Well, I had pretty great luck the last time I worked with a first-time director who was better known as an actor [Affleck]. There’s a shared language between them and their actors, because they’ve been there themselves. In the case of “Jack Goes Boating,” we had to go to some deep and dark places with our characters, leaving ourselves really open and vulnerable. I’m pretty good about putting my trust in most directors, anyway, but with Phil, since he was right there with me taking a chance and putting himself out there like that, too, that made it easier for me.
Q. Is there any difference in the way you approach a smaller film like this, compared with a bigger studio picture like “Green Zone” [with Matt Damon]?
A. In terms of the actual work, acting is acting, and you’re always asking yourself the same basic questions when it comes to analyzing a script or developing a character. I’ll admit, though, sometimes it’s nice having a big trailer, flying first-class or getting better food on the set [laughs].
Q. Since your Oscar nomination, have you noticed any change in the quantity or quality of scripts you’re seeing now?
A. Absolutely. It changed everything and has given me a chance to do a lot more varied work. Even doing something like a recurring role on “The Office” was like a whole new world for me, because most of my experience is with more dramatic things. Comedy is definitely harder, but I really enjoyed getting a taste of it.
Q. What do you remember about Oscar night?
A. What a thrill it was, and how jarring it was to actually be there. I was always used to watching it at home in my pajamas, but it’s a lot more chaotic and a lot less glossy and glamorous than it looks on TV.
Q. Now that you’ve attained a higher profile in Hollywood, is theater work a thing of the past for you?
A. I hope not. I’ve got my eye on a few theater projects, but I’m trying to be cautious. Doing a play can mean a six- or eight-month commitment, where sometimes you can shoot a movie role in a week or two. Given the state of roles for women in most films, I feel like I have a limited amount of time to take advantage of those offers, so I want to keep it going for as long as I can.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
