Ewan McGregor: MSN Interview

Q: How are you expecting this to be different to The Da Vinci Code?

A: I haven’t seen Da Vinci Code so I don’t know. I expect it to be very good, I think it was a great page turning script with a very nice ensemble cast and Ron [Howard] is quite a brilliant director, so I think it’ll be good.

 

Q: Did you intentionally not watch the Da Vinci Code?

A: No, I just didn’t see it.

 

Q: Fair enough. What do you think of Dan Brown’s writing?

A: I didn’t get involved with Dan Brown, I got involved with Ron Howard and this script. I haven’t read any of Dan Brown’s books other than this one. When something’s as popular as Dan’s work has been I tend to kind of go the other way. Everything  there’s a massive amount of mysteria about I tend to see 7 or 8 years later. In this case I used his book to flesh out the camera angle for me, and they’re different in the book he’s Italian and much older and in the film he’s an Irishman and my age.

 

Q: It’s not the first time you’ve played a Priest, how did you feel in the dog collar?

A: I quite liked it as a costume. It’s a very defining uniform - it’s a statement and it’s interesting to wear. In some of our scenes the Camerlengo is the only religious person in the room or the only man of the church in the room, so it gives him a kind of status that’s interesting.

 

Q: Tom Hanks comes in with the Langdon character and your character distrusts him. In your scenes with him, did you feel like you were going up against him as an actor?

A: No, he’s a fantastically nice man, Tom. He and Ron had worked together three or four times before and they have a nice relationship and a nice environment on set. He’s a sweetheart to work with.

 

Q: Was it difficult to imagine settings like the Vatican when filming on set?

A: No, our sets were amazing, beautiful sets. The Sistine Chapel set we had was spectacular, that’s often the case in films like this.

 

Q: What’s so good about a huge Hollywood production?

A: There’s no difference for me, there’s no difference in terms of what I do for my job because it’s the same. Whether I’m on a low budget film in Scotland or a big budget film in Hollywood my job is exactly the same. When I’m working on any film I give 100 percent and try my best to be believable and create the mood the director wants to create.

 

Q: How did you prepare?

A: I watched some documentaries on the Vatican, which were hugely boring and difficult to get through. We worked with a Priest on set. I was able to speak with him on some of the technicalities to make things realistic and accurate. Only what needed to be done to make sure it was accurate.

 

Q: Are you a conspiracy theorist?

A: No.

 

Q: So you don’t believe in the Illuminati?

A: I think Iluminati have existed in the past, but I think our writers have used them as a basis for something and have stretched and embellished that idea. I don’t think they’re plotting as we speak.

 

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