Page 30 - ARUBA TODAY

A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Friday 11 august 2017
Q&A: Samuel Jackson on race,

Trump and loving his job

By JAKE COYLE What do you love about on the screen. It’s just not
AP Film Writer the word ‘motherf-----’? what I expected. I guess
NEW YORK (AP) — Samuel Jackson: It’s a kind of all- growing up like Baldwin did
L. Jackson isn’t just in the encompassing word that in an inclusive society in
movies. He IS the movies. describes a lot of different New York, was very differ-
Does any other actor so feelings and a lot of differ- ent. For me, everything was
fully embody the high-oc- ent things. It all depends on very separate. Even the
tane thrills, the colorful lan- the inflection, the place in movie theaters I was going
guage, the sheer bigness of a particular sentence that to were all-black theaters. I
In this April 20, 2017 photo, Samuel L. Jackson poses for a portrait American movies? Jackson allows someone to under- went to a theater that was
in New York to promote his film, “The Hitman’s Bodyguard.” is, not coincidentally, typi- stand what you’re saying specifically black, in my
cally ranked as the highest and how you feel about it. neighborhood. My whole
all-time box-office star with It’s very freeing in an inter- existence was black. I only
nearly $5 billion in North esting sort of way to relieve encountered white people
American ticket sales over the pressure of the impor- when I went downtown.
his career. He’s a mainstay tance of something some- Now when I did see Sidney
of Marvel, a veteran of times. You can elevate Poitier or Harry Belafon-
both “Star Wars” and “Ju- something with mother---- te, I often questioned my
rassic Park,” and the de- or you can deflate it with mama about why he died
pendable muse of Quentin mother----. The word works all the time. Then when
Tarantino. He’s the bringer in so many wonderful and I started getting cast in
of “great vengeance and amazing ways. something, I’d flip through
furious anger” and the rid- AP: Wasn’t it also a word the script and see what
der of snakes from planes. you used to help you get page I died on. I got it, at
Jackson — ever-changing over stuttering as a young that point.
but always himself — is adult? AP: You’ll do movies with
ubiquitous. He travels, al- Jackson: I still do, as you’ve Raoul Peck and Spike Lee,
ways, with dozens of mov- probably noticed when I but you generally seem to
ies with him (John Woo and talk too fast. It was the re- favor larger popcorn mov-
Asian films are especially lease word. It was in the pin ies like “Kong: Skull Island”
beloved) and regularly in the bubble. or “The Legend of Tarzan.”
goes to the movie theater, AP: Not everyone in Hol- Jackson: When people say,
even to see his own mov- lywood always looks like “You do genre movies,”
ies. More than anyone else, they’re enjoying them- well, that’s what the movies
Jackson makes being a selves, but you do. were like when I was grow-
movie star look fun. Jackson: Yeah, I do. It’s ing up. Yeah, sure, I like a
That’s also true of his lat- one of those dream jobs. drama. I like being angst-
est, “The Hitman’s Body- I always liked the movies, ridden sometimes. But most
guard,” an R-rated action- from the time I was a kid. I of the time I want to go
comedy in which he stars did a lot of pretending with to the movies and watch
alongside Ryan Reynolds. my friends and I did plays some stuff that makes me
Throughout hails of bullets and all this other stuff. It go, ‘Oh man!’ I want to be
and high-speed chases, just kept going until I finally leave the theater going,
the two trade countless reached the point where I “That was awesome! That
foul-mouthed insults. Reyn- figured it was a viable oc- was great! Ahh!” That’s
olds, at one point, accuses cupation to have. Nobody why people go to the mov-
Jackson of ruining the word ever said, “You can be an ies and I want to be part of
“motherf-----” — a trade- actor.” When I finally de- that. I’ve always wanted to
mark of the actor’s. Jack- cided I was going to do it, it be in a King Kong movie,
son also recorded a blues just became my obsession. so there I am, standing in
song for the film, which, fit- I looked at Errol Flynn and front of King Kong. Yeah, so
tingly, opens with an exple- John Wayne and those I make trivial choices. But
tive. guys. It looked like fun, it should be that. It should
Jackson recounted his love swinging from ship to ship, be fun to do. People talk
of that word on a stop in sword fighting. about, “I can’t stand to
New York earlier this sum- AP: You recently narrat- watch myself on screen.”
mer. New York is where the ed the Oscar-nominated Well, get another job! You
68-year-old Jackson, a Ten- James Baldwin documen- expect people to pay $12
nessee native and gradu- tary “I Am Not Your Negro.” or $15 to go and see you
ate of Atlanta’s Morehouse Baldwin spoke about the and you don’t want to see
College, got his start in the- effect of growing up see- it? I don’t think so.
ater. He’s looking for a play ing only white faces on the AP: You’ve played golf with
now, he says, except that screen. Did you have that President Trump before.
“every time I mention it, my experience? What did you think of him?
agent seems to find me an- Jackson: I was growing up Jackson: I didn’t spend
other movie.” in segregation, so I didn’t enough time around him to
AP: You must be one of the expect to go to the movies decide if I really liked him or
greatest cursers to ever live. and see black people up did not like him. q