Jude Law is currently promoting Firebrand, where he plays late-in-life Henry VIII. They cast a former pretty-boy to play the former pretty-boy king. Thankfully, Jude has aged better than Henry VIII although I still wince whenever I see Jude’s current hairline. Still, I understand why he has so many babies (seven at last count). Jude recently chatted about Firebrand, British royalty, Hollywood and the 1990s with the Times. Some highlights:
On Hollywood: “Hollywood’s a hungry machine. Always looking for the new kid on the block. The attention cools off if your movies are not making a ton of money. There is a definite tier system as to who is offered what first, and if the work is not coming in as freely you have to consider what you want to do.”
On Firebrand. He thinks the film is about “surviving domestic abuse” and Law speaks of Henry as “a gangster — a former golden boy who’s rotting”. And as he continues speaking of “fear”, “despicable behaviour”, “physical ownership” and “sheer brutality.”
The comparison to Harvey Weinstein: “Yeah. Honestly, I never thought of him specifically — I didn’t focus in on Harvey’s life and downfall. But I was very aware that Henry symbolises the downfall of many men who soared through life with great success and got drunk on power, abused it and fell. And so Harvey must have crossed my mind. That disregard …”
Whether he’s a royalist? “I don’t know that I am. I’m intrigued by their history. But I’ve never been a great believer in treating someone a certain way because they are born under a title. And I don’t know that I want to bow down to anyone, personally.”
Why he does studio films: “Indie films don’t pay, so sometimes you get a franchise and go, ‘Fantastic, I can put that extension on my house.’”
The ‘90s revival: “I’ve been thinking about that. We always talked about the phone being the downfall of that era, that way of living. But, that said, we were all 20 then and now we’re all 50. It was a good time to be 20. I’ve got such fond memories, I don’t know that I want to try and relive them.”
He’s enthusiastic: “Enthusiasm doesn’t seem very palatable in the UK. But then I’ve always felt like I don’t really fit in.”
“But I’ve never been a great believer in treating someone a certain way because they are born under a title. And I don’t know that I want to bow down to anyone, personally.” It honestly just struck me that Jude isn’t one of those British actors who play the game with the Windsors – he’s not looking to socialize with the Windsors, he rarely attends events with them and he’s not cozying up to any charities or patronages associated with them. That’s interesting. He just does his own thing and moves around in Hollywood and British productions. He’s the quiet small-r republican. Good for him.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.