If you rewatchChristopher Nolan'sThe Prestigeclosely, you may find, among the doppelganger trickery andDavid Bowiecharisma, a surprising name pop on in the special thanks section of the credits:Derek DelGaudio, the boundary-breaking illusionist whose recent Hulu concert filmIn & Of Itselfwill make anyone weep.
At the young age of 24, DelGaudio was a magic consultant onThe Prestige, working closely with Nolan to teach stars like Hugh JackmanandChristian Balehow to convincingly pull of the illusions and sleight of hand tricks seen in the film. When I recently spoke with DelGaudio over Zoom, he talked about his involvement and, frankly, his indimitation:
"My dear friends, the late Ricky Jay and dear friend Michael Weber, consulted on that movie and they had to stop consulting on it, and the production was still continuing and they needed someone to come fill their shoes. So I became the guy that helped facilitate the magic on set and helped the actors, primarily Hugh Jackman, learn what it was to become a magician and embody that. And so yeah, that was a very intimidating for a — I was like 24 years old, something like that. But it was a really good experience."
DelGaudio took a lot from working with Nolan, noting it was "rare to see someone that focused and cool [when working on a] machine that is so big and so vast, and to have so much on the line, and to see someone at the helm of that being cool was impressive. And being young at the time, not knowing what it takes to get to the point where you're that cool under pressure. Sowatching him work was almost like seeing a movie version of a director. He even looked the part. He had a scarf on and just had a cool accent. He just looked and acted the part. And it wasn't posturing, he really does understand how to make a film, obviously."
DelGaudio also remarked on the differences in craft and countenance in Jackman and Bale, while making sure to highlight their incredible professionalism and commitment to their roles:
"Hugh Jackman was the first movie star I'd ever met. I had met a lot of famous people, I had never met the Clark Gable, comes out of his trailer, smiles and there's a twinkle in his teeth, and everyone loves [him]. I mean, a George Clooney level of just everything. Because usually when you meet actors in person, they feel like, 'Oh, you're like a person.' But Hugh was six four. He'd just done Wolverine or something so he was just completely shredded, just handsome and charming and amazing and generous and kind. On every Friday, he would go around the set and give out scratch cards to everyone on set,personally hand them out to every single individual on set, and it was just a fun thing to do on Fridays.
Christian was in character all the time and you couldn't even recognize him. He didn't even look like himself some of the time. He was invisible and immersed himself in the role. And Hugh Jackman did the same but from a different perspective and a different way. So it was amazing to watch two masters of a craft really digest something that I know so well. And so watching them assume the role of what it means to be a magician was really fascinating and rewarding. And no one was working on a surface level on that film. These are guys who really dig deep and try to do the work. And it was really amazing to watch that."
Be on the lookout for the rest of my interview with DelGaudio soon. And if you want to see how DelGaudio's mastery and immersion of the craft plays out in his own, unique way, be sure to streamIn & Of Itselfon Hulu now.