Jude: Nervous to play the Dane
Wednesday, 21 Nov 2007 12:02
Law arrived at the premiere with hair closely cropped for his upcoming film Repossession Mambo.
He might regularly top 'sexiest man alive' lists, but Sleuth star Jude Law tells Lewis Bazley he still has the same insecurities as any actor.
Consistent run-ins with the paparazzi and the career-damaging revelation of his affair with his children's nanny have left Law's position in the Hollywood firmament seemingly hanging by a thread and he's frequently expressed resentment at constantly being tagged as 'Heartthrob Jude Law' rather than garnering admiration for his professional abilities.
The respect of his peers remains however, and impressive turns in Mike Nichols' Closer, Martin Scorsese's The Aviator and Anthony Minghella's complex Breaking and Entering keep the 34-year-old firmly at the top of most casting directors' wishlists, regardless of tabloid perceptions.
And the high esteem in which he is held by his fellow thespians extends to being able to convince Sir Michael Caine to remake a 35-year-old thriller as well as roping in the notoriously prickly Nobel laureate Harold Pinter to script.
Yet despite a steadily rising salary, two Oscar nominations and effusive praise from Caine, Pinter and Sleuth director Kenneth Branagh, an upcoming appointment to play one of the most testing roles in the literary canon has left the actor understandably apprehensive.
Talking at the premiere of his new movie Law confirmed that he'll soon be reuniting with Branagh for a potentially career-defining part - that of Hamlet.
"We're part of a four-production season at the Wyndhams theatre in conjunction with the Donmar, which starts at the end of 2008 and goes into 2009," he told inthenews.co.uk.
When asked if he was fearful of portraying the role widely considered to be the pinnacle of any acting career, he admitted: "You've got to be nervous about it, but it's a great part in a great play.
"Fifty per cent of the challenge is finding a good script and finding a good part and that's two of those done."
"I felt when Ken [Branagh] asked me, I just felt that I was in good hands. He's experienced Hamlet as a director and an actor, so I was really thrilled that he asked. The timing felt right."
Law added: "I don't want to be an old Hamlet, so I thought 'I'd better do it bloody quick!'"
But for now Law is starring opposite another of the UK's acting greats in Caine. And the general failure of his remake of Caine's classic Alfie seemingly hasn't deterred Law from stepping into the legend's shoes for a second time. While Caine played aspiring young actor Milo Tindle in the 1972 original opposite Sir Laurence Olivier's befuddled Andrew Wyke, it's Caine who's the cuckold on this occasion, with his babyfaced co-star the culprit.
Law's production company Riff Raff were responsible for the 'reimagining' of Anthony Shaffer's acclaimed psychological drama, but he says he hadn't always planned to step in front of the camera.
But with the combined directing and writing talents of Branagh and Pinter on board for the film, Law eventually couldn't resist the chance to play the adulterous Tindle.
"I don't remember exactly [deciding to act in the film]. It wasn't during the writing of the script. Harold and I worked on it together, he wrote and I worked on with him for about two years, so that was about three years ago. I don't know, it was around the time Ken got involved really," Law explained.
While Law portrays a role originated by Caine in the acclaimed original, working with his firm friend wasn't intimidating.
"It felt like we were working on something new," he told the amassed reporters at the premiere. "And I don't think he'd have got involved if he felt we were remaking it."
The Sky Captain star added: "As [Caine] put it, 'We did a perfectly good job the first time.' So he really thought we were starting a new project and the part felt like a new part."
Whether this "new project" will be less of a misfiring mess than Law's last attempt to play a classic Caine role remains to be seen but one thing's for sure - when you're as successful and handsome as Jude Law, the British tabloids are never going to like you.
Sleuth hits UK screens on November 23rd.
Click here to read the full inthenews.co.uk review.
Lewis Bazley
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