For the âI Am Legendâ press junket last week, I participated in a press conference type interview with Will. What that means is a ton of people took turns asking questions. When Iâve done these types of interviews before, the results have been mixed. Sometimes the Q&A is a big waste of time, and sometimes, like the one posted below, the resulting interview is worth reading.
During the 30 or so minutes we had with Will, he talked about filming in
As always, you can either read the transcript below or listen to the audio as an MP3 by clicking here. Finally, if you missed the movie clips I previously posted, you can watch them here.
âI Am Legendâ opens this Friday at theaters everywhere. And remember, there is a special âDark Knightâ trailer attached to every print of the movie, so see it in IMAX if you can. Itâs worth it.
Question: What was the experience of shooting in
Will Smith: Shooting in
Q: How significant is that the last man alive is African American?
Will Smith: (Laughs) First and last, baby. (laughs) Itâs funny, itâs almost a metaphysical idea for me. I rarely think about that until someone brings it up. Then I say âOh, wow. That never actually crossed my mind in that way.â I kind of feel like, for me at least, the acknowledgement of those kinds of ideas put a weird boundary on my thoughts. I canât allow myself to be a part of it because it sort of makes me think smaller, if that makes any sense. I said all that to say that Iâve never really thought about the significance of that with the film.
Q: What about the loneliness of your character, Robert Neville, and the madness he begins to feel?
Will Smith: Basically, you are acting for the first half of the movie by yourself. It was such a wonderful exploration of myself. What happens is that you get in a situation where you donât have people to create the stimulus for you to respond to. What happens is that you start creating the stimulus and the response. There is a connection with yourself, where your mind starts to drift to in those types of situations, that you learn about your self things you would never even imagination. In order to prepare for that we sat with former POWs and we sat with people who had been in solitary confinement. That was the framework for creating the idea. They said, âThe first thing is a schedule. You will not survive in solitary if you donât schedule everything.â We talked to Geronimo Ji-Jaga, formerly Geronimo Pratt of the Black Panthers, and he was in solitary for over three months. He said that you plan things like cleaning your nails. You will take two hours, which you have to because itâs on the schedule, which you have to just clean your nails. He said that he spent about six weeks and he trained roaches to bring him food. Iâm sitting there like, âOh my God.â The idea of where your mind goes to defend itself. Either he really did train the roaches, which is huge, or his mind needed that to survive. Either way, you put that on camera and itâs genius. For me, that was the thing, to be able to get into the mental space where whatever the truth was for Robert Neville didnât matter. The only thing that mattered is what he saw and what he believed. How many people picked up on the mannequin shot at the end with the little turn of the head? You saw that? There are probably like six or seven of those in the movie. It was such a great exploration of what happens to the human mind that is trying to defend itself. For me, Iâm a better actor for having had to create both sides of the scene, with no dialogue.
Q: A couple of questions here, you have had a passion for âI Am Legendâ since you were going to do it with director
Will Smith: That was a special effect. We had the worlds best grey hair people come in from -- uh, they were uh, from
Q: The cover of âMenâs Vogueâ alluded to the idea that you may have converted to Scientology?
Will Smith: No, wow, thatâs what you got? (laughs) Well, that is a broad array of questions. On the first one, Robert Neville staying with me this long. I think with movies I am really connecting to the Joseph Campbell idea of the collective unconscious. There are things that we all dream, there are things that each one of us has thought, that connect to life, death, and sex. There are things that are beyond language. To me, this is one of those concepts. Times that you have been on the freeway many times and wished that everybody were dead. (laughs) There have been times where things have gone and you just wish you were by yourself. You donât need any of these assholes. You just want to be by yourself. That coupled with, that separation from people, being ripped away from people, being separated, connected with the dark and unknown of the dark. Itâs how we would fair against whatever is in that unknown is a really primal idea. I couldnât always articulate it like that but Iâve loved this concept. It connects to ideas that a four year old can understand. The one in the middle?
Q: And, the grey hair.
Will Smith: Yes, that is a European, they are, GHI, or Grey Hair International and they just do that, because this is what it normally is. (laughs) I can prove it! I can prove it! (laughs) As far as Scientology. I donât necessarily believe in organized religion. I was raised in a Baptist household, went to a Catholic church, lived in a Jewish neighborhood, and had the biggest crush on the Muslim girls from one neighborhood over. Tom (Cruise) introduced me to the ideas. Iâm a student of world religion, so to me, itâs hugely important to have knowledge and to understand what people are doing. What are all the big ideas? What are people talking about? I believe that my connection, to my higher power, is separate from everybodyâs. I donât believe that the Muslims have all the answers. I donât believe the Christians have all the answer, or the Jews have all the answers, so I love my God, my higher power. Itâs mine and mine alone. I create my connection and I decide how my connection is going to be.
Q: What was it like working with your daughter
Will Smith: You kind of donât work with
Q: What would you do in a real life disaster? Have you ever had to play the hero in the real world?
Will Smith: That is always a tough question. That is what is interesting about playing a character like this. You get to explore and wonder how you would react. For me, âAliâ was the greatest time of asking myself that question. When Ali didnât step forward because they wouldnât call him Muhammad Ali, and he knew he was going to jail, he knew what the situation was going to be, but still he couldnât step forward. I just remember thinking, in that moment, âWhat would I do?â I just donât know if I would be enough man to give up everything I have right now, the way Ali did, for that principle. When I look at Robert Neville, I think, âWhat was there to live for? What was there to hope for? To wake up everyday and try to restore something that is good and gone?â I like to believe that I would put my chest up and stand forward, just march on and continue to fight for the future of humanity. I would probably find a bridge and say âIâm coming to join you
Q: Which one of your kids demanded more money, Jaden or
Will Smith: Jaden, we say when we look at Jaden and
Q: How attached did you get to Samantha, the dog in âI Am Legend?â
Will Smith: Oh, Abbey is the dogâs real name. When I was probably nine years old, I had a dog Trixie. It was a white golden retriever that got hit by a car. So now I refuse, I have had no animals. âJada, you can have the dogs you want, the kids can have the dogs they want, but Iâm not putting myself emotionally connected to a dog anymore.â Then, they brought that damn Abbey on the set. You say a âsmartâ dog. It got to the point with Abbey that she would be playing, playing, playing, and she would hear âRolling!â so she would run over to her mark and get ready. I was like âWhat in the hell?â Itâs like she would know when I wasnât doing my lines right. If I would get lost in the scene she would just go silent you know? (laughs) It was the first time I had allowed myself to connect and be fond of a dog, since that experience, and to the owner I said, âPlease, Abbey had to live with me. Please.â He was like âWell, this is how I make my living, man.â I was like âTell me what you need. Tell me what you need. A house in the hills?â But she was smart, just fun, and warm. I experienced the pain again, because he said âIâll bring her over every weekend Will, but she has to work.â It was painful. She is great. I used to watch âLassieâ and animals really can be smarter than other animals. She is way on another plain of connecting to what your energy is, what your feelings are, and protective. Itâs beautiful.
Q: When is the last time you were called âFresh Prince?â
Will Smith: About four seconds ago (laughs).
Q: Do you still talk with DJ Jazzy Jeff?
Will Smith: Yeah, Jeff and I perform a couple of times a year. Weâre going to go out big in July. We are figuring out some places around the world to do some big shows. Itâs about to be that circle back to the golden age of hip-hop. There is starting to be a little resurgence, so yeah, we are planning some things. As far as Fresh Prince, itâs interesting. On July 6, 1996 âFresh Princeâ stopped. After âIndependence Day,â that Monday, after âIndependence Dayâ was the first time that anyone called me Mr. Smith. I was like, âWhat the hell?â All through âThe Fresh Princeâ, all through the music, it was âFresh Prince, Fresh Prince.â And that morning, when the box office numbers came out, after âIndependence Day,â it was âGood morning Mr. Smith.â It was so bizarre. I specifically remember that morning is when people started calling me Mr. Smith.
Q: Will the new tour coincide with your next film âHancock?â
Will Smith: Yeah, it will probably go out with âHancockâ and do performances with premieres around the world.
Q: After âI Am Legendâ do you want to do a comedy?
Will Smith: Yes.
Q: Whatâs next?
Will Smith: Working with Gabriele (Muccino) on something in March, itâs called âSeven Pounds.â Gabriele has a wonderful insight on who I am and how to get the best out of me. Michael Mann and Gabriele Muccino/ You know how people can have X-ray vision on you? There are some people that you canât pull tricks on, they know exactly what is going on. They see you, right to the heart of who you are, and what you are feeling. That is the relationship I have with those guys. Iâm definitely looking forward to getting back in there with Gabriele. âHancockâ is July 4 with Charlize Theron and Jason Bateman. Peter Berg directed. Akiva Goldsman, Michael Mann, and myself are producing.
Q: What is âHancockâ about?
Will Smith: If you can imagine, itâs the Michael Mann version of an alcoholic super hero. It is so bizarre. Michael Mann developed a script about an alcoholic super hero.
Q: Isnât your character in love with his buddyâs best friend?
Will Smith: Right. Jason Bateman plays a publicist and I save his life. He begins to rehabilitate me in the eyes of the public.
Q: The movie with Muccino is a comedy?
Will Smith: No, itâs a dramatic film. Itâs fiction.
Q: Many of the books on the âNew York Timesâ best-seller list deals with life, the self-conscious and our feelings. What do you think it is that has people so fascinated in that subject, since thatâs what the film deals with?
Will Smith: I think itâs a primal idea. Carl Jung talked about the collective unconscious and how we dream similar things, even though we have no contact with one another. If you map the dreams of an Aboriginal tribe in
Q: With the holidays coming up, are your kids expecting a Lamborghini? How do you keep them grounded?
Will Smith: Itâs funny, itâs really simple. Jaden and Trey are very simple.
Q: Would you say sheâs like a shop-a-holic?
Will Smith: Itâs funny, she doesnât like shopping. She doesnât like going out and shopping. She wants you to think about her and she loves the idea that she gets things by surprise. Christmas really isnât big for her. If she knows its coming itâs not as big of a deal. Jaden just wants his family around. Anything that causes the whole family to be together, that is what he wants.
Q: How do you manage to keep them grounded?
Will Smith: We live in La-la-land out here.
Q: Is there another country you would like to take your family to and possibly live in?
Will Smith: Not to live. To me,