Full ‘Details’ Interview
Here’s the full text of the Details magazine Interview:
The Lost Boy
In which Robert Pattinson anguishes over his great luck, laments the passing of ’80s porn, dreams of being groped by a lady elephant – again – and leaves us to wonder how an intensely earnest 23-year-old who’s unable to find his way around his hometown can possibly navigate the maze of megastardom
Interview by Jenny Lumet
COFFEE
It’s the unseasonably cold November of 2008 when I go to New York’s Bowery Hotel. There’s a young man sitting in the garden, wrapped in about nine black sweaters and wearing a wool hat, smoking cigarettes, sipping a latte the size of his head, and furiously making notes on a script in the bitter cold. I have read about teenage girls lighting themselves on fire in front of his hotel, but at the moment Robert Pattinson is warming his hands on a coffee cup.
Hello, I’m Jenny. I think I’m here so yon can check me out.
“Okay. I’m Rob. Urn … would you like some fries? With gravy?”
Allen Coulter, the director of Hollywoodland and a creative force behind The Sopranos, has sent me. He was thinking about doing this movie—it wasn’t quite there yet, but I should “come meet Rob.”
Rob. When he came to the United States, he slept on his agent’s sofa and then got a small part in a movie called Harry Potter and the Something of Something, which grossed nearly $900 million worldwide. And then he made another one, called Twilight, which grossed $385 million in theaters and almost another $200 million in U.S. DVD sales. Box-office riches, like so much of the female population of this planet, follow him from continent to continent, nursing a raging crush.
Coulter suggested I do some rewrite work on Remember Me (for the record, there is only one credited writer, Will Fetters), the first American release in which Rob will portray a mortal, nonmagical, carbon-based life form of the earthly realm—Salvador Dali, whom he played in Little Ashes, surely doesn’t qualify. As Rob scribbles away on the script’s pages, it’s clear he is starting his own revision process.
Rob’s face is constantly busy—especially his kaleidoscopic eyes, which are continually rolling and dilating, because he is always thinking. Over the course of that latte, he contemplates Jimi Hendrix, French fries, girls, art, beer, his cousin the philosopher, girls, truth, God, his dog, girls, and whether this week’s stalker has followed him from L.A. I don’t think he could turn his brain off if he wanted to.
Despite the legion of fans trailing him from hotel to hotel, laying siege to each like the Roman army, he is neither fearful nor cocky—he’s hungry, curious, forever reaching intellectually. That may not sound like a big deal, but think of the context: Complete strangers want to fuck you, shoot you, be you, buy you, sell you, run their fingers through your hair, watch you have sex, hear you pee, eat chips with you, and kidnap you and stuff you in the trunk of their car. And you? You must know more, more, more about exotic tropical diseases.
Rob and I discover we share a mutual fascination with afflictions that maim and disfigure and disgust: He brings up cancrum oris, in which bacteria eat away at your face until you get kind of a window in the side of your head and the entire world sees your teeth; I mention cyclic vomiting syndrome, a condition in which you puke literally all the goddamn time; he delights in lymphatic filariasis, where parasitic worms burrow into your lymph nodes and can make your balls swell to the size of watermelons, forcing you to tote them around in a wheelbarrow.
We come up with a blockbuster hit movie, entitled Candiru Infestation, about a tiny fish that swims up your urethra and into your urinary tract and lodges in your cock with backward-facing umbrella spikes it shoots from its spine.
“Fucking brilliant! It could be like Finding Nemo!” says Rob. “And the little candiru is lost in the balls! Think of the soundtrack!”
BEER NO. 1
Fourteen months later we’re in London. New Moon, the second movie in the Twilight saga, has set box-office records for largest midnight opening and biggest opening-day gross. Remember Me, Rob’s young-man-in-crisis drama, has wrapped. He has 24 hours before he has to start rehearsals for Bel Ami, based on the Guy de Maupassant novel, in which he plays a bed-hopping social climber.
He is waiting to pick me up in the bar of my hotel. He has ordered himself a pint of beer and, remembering my beverage of choice, a Diet Coke for me. He has the lovely manners of the good son of a good mum.
He says he wants to take me to a particular restaurant nearby, “just a little out-of-the-way place.” So out of the way, it turns out, that after wandering around nearly all of Covent Garden, we can’t find it. He doesn’t seem too surprised, really. Of late he’s been getting lost a lot in his own hometown. But then it’s been a couple of years since he’s actually lived here, and London is confusing as hell anyway.
Considering alternatives, we peek into a crowded cafe full of the young and beautiful, but he recoils. A few minutes later, when we come to a tiny Mexican place, his hackles go up a bit. Hmm. I ask him whether, at this point, he’s able to sniff out crazed fans lurking under the tables.
“Yes. Sure. But last time I was here, the guacamole was bad.”
Rob has made no sartorial concessions to Britain’s ugliest winter weather in 30 years. A button-down, light Carhartt-like jacket, no gloves. He does have a hat, perhaps the same one he wore in New York. I’m swaddled like the Michelin Man and I’m fucking freezing. He’s cheery, unfazed, giggling away. It occurs to me that London seems to afford him a freedom he doesn’t have in New York or Los Angeles. And a London night with deserted, snow-piled streets, after an epic storm that paralyzed Heathrow and shut down the Eurostar trains, is like an unbridled romp while going commando.
Without trying, we arrive back where we started, in front of the Covent Garden Hotel. Across the street there’s a high-end sex-toy-and-bondage shop called Coco de Mer. I mention that I popped in there earlier (before the National Gallery, thank you), and I tell him about this insane S&M body-harness contraption they have that allows you to dress up like a horse and have a long tail.
“That’s so English. I want to do this entire interview wearing it, from an equine point of view,” he says, stomping the sidewalk with make-believe hooves. “Seriously. As an experiment in public percep¬tions. Is the place still open?”
BEER NO. 2
We’re inside, at a warm corner of the hotel’s Brasserie Max, and Rob is having another beer. We’re talking about how he copes. “When I was 17 until, I don’t know, 20, I had this massive, baseless confidence. This very clear idea of myself and how I would achieve success, which involved making decisions. I saw myself picking up the phone and saying ‘Absolutely not’ or ‘Definitely yes’. Having control. Except you have to figure out whether the way you think at 19 or 20 has any value. And eventually I understood, with all that control, which was probably illusory, I wasn’t progressing. So now I’m relinquishing a bit. I’ll be a tiny bit naked. Except tonight I won’t, because it’s fucking freezing and my balls will shrivel up.”
He may keep his balls covered in winter, but Allen Coulter says that during the shooting of Remember Me, Rob did bare himself: “It was about control, for him, in the beginning. But he wanted forward motion more than he wanted to protect himself. Really brave—especially for a young guy with a big target on his back.”
Rob does seem eager to shed some clothing, to give up the reins.
“Shall we go see about that harness? Seriously, you eventually realize you can’t make every single decision. I was always building, always protecting something. At the same time, I seemed to be losing the ability to move. I’d protected myself into checkmate. Even mentally.”
In that moment, he has a realization: “I can barely remember the last two years. Not like a haze of partying or anything like that. Just … it’s been crazy.”
There’s been surreal stuff. Like the time at a charity event in Cannes when two attendees bid nearly $60,000 combined to have Rob give their daughters a kiss on the cheek.
There’s been scary stuff, though the idea he might truly be at risk strikes him as absurd: “I find it really funny—if I got shot, I would literally be in hysterics. I would be like, ‘Are you serious? Jesus Christ, get Zac Efron! He’s got more social relevance than I do.’”
He’s pretty sure there was some good stuff, too. “There was this one time with some elephants on a golf course in Barcelona …”
He drifts into a reverie. He gets amazed easily, and at the moment he’s fixated on the mysterious green bar snacks. They’re sort of like wasabi peas, but not. They’re covered in chili powder and look like tiny tumors. He’s eating every single one.
“Fuck, these are good. What are they? I want to snort them—they’d clear up my sinuses.”
BEER NO. 3
Rob’s hunger is more than merely metaphorical. He orders two entrees—the mini beefburgers with tomato-and-onion relish and the mini chicken burgers with mango chutney—along with another pint. “I eat so much, I’m like a compulsive eater. I’ve been eating room service, and I’m always really worried about it, so I choose like six things on the menu and eat them all.”
He doesn’t want to miss anything, which implies a hint of regret. He didn’t always want to be an actor. He modeled. He’s a talented guitarist and keyboard player who has toyed with following his older sister Lizzy into pop music. But he’s a serious type, and his most serious aspirations involved political speech writing. “It’s fascinating. You’d have two or three minutes to affect someone. Make them hear you. Get the message out and maybe it will echo. I quite enjoyed doing press for the first Twilight, because there was a similarity. But after a bit I was ladling it out. If you want people to listen to you, you’d better have something to say. I felt a responsibility to be fascinating. You’re bargaining with the audience. Is this enough for them? And that affects the way you look at art.”
Art. It’s illogical to think he’s not allowed to have ideas about it merely because he has helped a lot of people make a lot of money.
“Before, I felt like I couldn’t break through anything, including myself. And now it feels a bit as though I’ve climbed along the side of my brain and am at least looking in. But I know it will take me at least another 10 years before I’m remotely satisfied with anything I do. But with acting you keep trying in the hopes you might be… great. But then I think, does wanting to be good or even great, or even just wanting to make art, cheapen the experience?”
I worry his head is going to explode. He answers questions with questions. Doors open onto more doors. This sometimes leads to trouble with scripts: Since he sees every character’s point of view, he often needs some sort of distillation. The catch is that unless the distillation somehow encompasses every character’s essence, it only causes his imagination to fire more wildly. It’s the kaleidoscope-vision thing.
Some people can have the ocean in front of them and just put their big toe in. Rob wants to swim until he drowns, and he’s going to try to drink it all up before he goes under. His striving is a source of worry because he can’t really tell anybody he wants more: “Please don’t make this about me complaining. Please. I’m the luckiest bastard on the planet.” He worries he might be selfish. He worries maybe he’s a nonhumanist-separatist-weirdo because his most profound moments have been with his dog. And he worries about whether he can be an actor who can reach the masses and still ask for anything.
“If it exists out there—this invisible-creative-spirit-idea thing—then you’re the medium through which it travels so everybody can touch it. But… what gives you the right to be the medium? What gives you the right to claim it? And then get an agent and say I want $20 million and a fruit basket to be the medium, thank you very much.
“As an actor, you can elevate the human condition or cheapen it. I would assume it’s the same with anything you do—you try to elevate and maybe someday you will.”
An actor may indeed have the ability to raise us, but Rob unconsciously starts speaking sotto voce each time he utters the word actor or any variation of it.
Rob, did you know that every time you say actor or acting you lower your voice to a whisper?
He’s genuinely startled. “I do?”
Yes, so quietly it’s like you’re saying Negro.
He laughs, lightens up. “What if we were ‘acting’ like ‘Negroes? Then we’d be fucked—we couldn’t hear anything…”
BEER NO. 4
Rob asks the waiter for another beer. He’s talking about an uncle who worked in a steel mill in the Yorkshire town his dad grew up in. Rob’s father and his other uncles moved away as soon as they were old enough, but the eldest brother stayed there his whole life.
“They’re bulldozing houses, whole streets of houses. And my dad asked him, ‘Why stay?’ He said, ‘Who’s going to look after our mom?’ And I was just thinking, Jesus fucking Christ, there might be something wrong with my emotional sight, because I’m not sure if I could make that kind of sacrifice. The only emotional connection of relevance is with my dog. My relationship with my dog, it’s ridiculous.
“I think you need to be able to break through what you think about yourself to try to make any sort of art. I used to play music all the time, and the most amazing part was the freedom that came with kicking myself in the ass, letting go, and surprising myself.“
He tried to let go a little bit with the photo shoot accompanying this interview—it wasn’t easy.
“I really hate vaginas. I’m allergic to vagina. But I can’t say I had no idea, because it was a 12-hour shoot, so you kind of get the picture that these women are going to stay naked after, like, five or six hours. But I wasn’t exactly prepared. I had no idea what to say to these girls. Thank God I was hungover.”
Is your mom going to have something to say about it?
“Oh, God.” He puts his head in his hands, shrugs. “Well, she quite enjoyed when I got her cable.” It’s not that Rob’s mother now spends all night watching Skinemax in her London home. “No, no! God, no! It’s just that there’s nakedness all over the place now. But this shoot, it’s kind of eighties nakedness, you know? If you look at porn in, like, the eighties, there was something kind of quaint about it, quite sweet—like this little naked community. The people who made it liked it, they had respect for it. Not remotely like the porn that’s available now. No community in it at all. It’s just everything, everywhere.”
CANDY
In the U.K., Smarties are made of chocolate and are kind of like M&M’s in weird colors like mauve and teal but somehow more delicious. Rob’s not really a dessert guy, yet he’s rapidly hoovering my last packet of Smarties. “Amazing. I’ve eaten like 5,000 of these already. See what you have to deal with?”
In Remember Me he plays a guy whose issues are eerily like his own. Tyler is a young man who has retreated into himself, but then he meets a woman, becomes conflicted, and has to choose whether to remain in lockdown or step into life and the world.
“Tyler is so aware of his actions. But he has no idea whether they’re of any value at all. Can you be a person if you live in the bubble? He’s stuck in the middle. At the same time, he’s lucky to have the choice. Conflict is innate in a lucky person.” What attractedyou to the role?
“I’m а lucky person. Thank God. And I’m conflicted. Thank God.”
He tells me about a book he read called Eat the Rich, by P.J. O’Rourke (full disclosure: P.J. was married briefly to my sister, though Rob had no idea). He was drawn to a part that says something like: One man’s wealth does not mean another man’s poverty—and vice versa. Rob’s slightly embarrassed to voice this idea.
He is unsure whether to feel guilty, to bask in it all, or both. Thing is, there aren’t any rules for a life as extraordinary as his is right now.
He tells me an elephant story. Not the one about Barcelona elephants—one about some he’d met recently in California.
“Did you know elephants purr? It’s completely scary if you don’t know what it is. They purr like cats, but their heads are so deep they sound like velociraptors. You feel it in the ground under your feet.
“So this big female started sniffing my foot—big female elephant, that is. She sniffed it so hard it came up off the pavement like her trunk was a vacuum cleaner. Then she took my entire body in her mouth. I was holding on to her head, and as I slowly let go she tightened her grip really carefully until I’m just upside down in her mouth and she’s going through my pockets with her trunk, looking for peppermints. It was the best day of my life.”
So you gave up control to an elephant, got groped, mugged, had your candy tugged at—and it was glorious?
“Yeah. So beautiful you can’t imagine. And the baby elephant was so excited that it sprinted out and did its routine in five seconds and then curtsied to everybody. It was actually laughing. Brilliant. Did you know they can also do imitations of other animals? A horse, a chicken, a monkey—these elephants could, anyway. They were movie elephants. One had written a screenplay, and one really wants to direct.”
He laughs. He was in Los Angeles, in discussions to star with Sean Penn in Water for Elephants, an adaptation of Sara Gruen’s novel. The elephants are actors like him, and he wonders if he might, on some cosmic level, be a bit like them.
“Do you know how they die? The elephant guy told me their molars get ground down from eating wood but regenerate like six times. And after that they slowly starve to death. Which is poignant, but that must also be what gives them time to get to the elephant graveyard. They’re incredibly designed creatures.
“I mean, people hang on way too fucking long. If I knew that when my teeth fell out, that was it… Wow.
“The best day of my life. Beautiful, beautiful day.“
A few moments later, Rob announces he’s going to get a cab home and excuses himself.
Can I walk you? I don’t like you going out there all by yourself!
“I’ll be okay.”
The article is great and I LOVE the cover shot. We have to remember that Rob is a grown man an I really think the pics are very tasteful. He is one of the most interesting people ever.I would be so intimidated to even have a conversation with him, but I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to stop staring at his eyes long enough to think of a complete thought LOL
A very complex guy… I feel like he’d be happy whatever’s happening to him because he’s so fascinated and curious about everything around him.
This interview was probably one of the most interesting he’s done.. and the most intimate/raw..
I truly LOVE this photo shoot.. everything about it just shows off Robert as the artwork!.. tasteful, erotic… addictive
and I love that in London he can just mooch about and jump in a cab without a concern.. however.. checking out the type of clientele in restaurants to see how busy they are etc.. was disturbing.. but a part of his life right now..
really.. love this photo shoot.. really love this interview… his intellect is what really seals it for me. and I think for most women.. hence why David Beckham is only beautiful until he opens his mouth! ..ha..
Did Jenny Lumet write Rachel Getting Married?????…
and by the way chips and gravy.. are my all time favourite at the chippy!!… I can’t even imagine Rob asking for FRIES and gravy.. just not quite the same thing!..
@Kizzie…chips and gravy? Just no…yuck! LOL! Agree with everything else you say though. The man is fascinating and unique. Love the pictures and love the interview but he’s ‘ruffled a few feathers’ looking at other blogs/sites comments. Yet another backlash to contend with. Hope he has a thick skin Bless him.
French fries and gravy is delicious! I always order my fries with a side of gravy. My husband and kids refuse to try it, but who cares? More for me. And Rob if he’s willing to share a plate of fries with me!
Can’t wait for the magazine to come out!
Did Jenny Lumet do the screen writing for Remember Me
Allergic to vagina? Um… I have extremely mixed feelings about this interview. I hate text interviews because I can’t tell the intention behind them… anyone else feel like commenting on that bit?
I really didn’t like the interview because the writer’s style seems very forced and contrived, like they’re using all these “vulgar” words just to shock the reader. Pretty lame, in my opinion… I don’t know…
I think that Robert’s personality came through very well in this interview.. the majority (if not all) of his interviews for Twilight promotions are going to be carefully worded for the audience… DETAILS magazine is not a teeny bopper magazine.. I can hardly imagine a 23 year old fella not saying the ‘f’ word etc… DETAILS printed that… intonation is a wonderful thing… we miss it here on this very site… Allergic to vagina.. is a subject I am sure will arise again and again… Rob will have the opportunity to express what he meant.. if he so wishes.. I imagine it was said with sarcasm…. spending 12 hours with two naked woman.. etc….
I just think reading about Robert away from his bubblegum teen image is just something he didn’t have to shield anyone from… he could say what he wanted.. etc. etc. There must be other interviews prior to Twilight where he was swearing.. etc..
anyway… I don’t see why people are so uptight.. he’s a young guy.. and he’ going to swear.. he isn’t an angel!!.. *might look like one though!.. rusty halo and all..
Yes – Jenny was the screenwriter for Rachel Got Married and Remember Me – I liked the photoshoot (although not my favourite of Rob) and thought the interview was fascinating – oh yes, those who only love Rob as Edward will be very disturbed by both!
Certainly ruffling feathers.. LOVE IT!!.. ha..
CHIPS in the UK are thick chunky fries… Bettsy.. don’t worry.. !.. yum… the gravy soaks into the fluffy potato! YUMMY.. skinny french fries just don’t quite have the same effect!..ha..
I”m hungry just looking at these.. sorry had to post!.. ha..
CHIPS AND GRAVY!!!!!!!!!!
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a383/lidiabier/food/photos1251.jpg
I admire Rob’s honesty, but I think it’s not wise for him to drink before or during interviews. It’s like he’s talking to his therapist, and it’s going to come back to bite him. He comes off like Holden Caufield — intellectually brilliant and emotionally inexperienced, which I don’t necessarily think he is. He needs to be a touch more careful, only to avoid having to explaing himself in subsequent interviews/appearances.
The pics are great. I think the photographer was going for a Story of O theme?
Melinda.. you could be right on the ball… Rob said himself that his biggest problem is telling everyone everything… ………. I guess he was comfortable talking with Jenny…
Was he trying to change his image or destroy it? Seems like a lot of u no what! and the pics are soft porn….so not Rob up to this point.
It’s all about perception, its a who’s who… do we really know the real Rob, I don’t think so. We all have many facets, hold it up to a light at different angles and we will see different points of view. I for one like this facet of Rob, it took a lot of strength and character for him to make this bold move in doing this magazine interveiw and photo lay out.
Even at such a young age, this isn’t the first time that he has made bold moves, think about some of the choices in movie scripts, some of the dark anguished characters he has betrayed and will be betraying, The Haunted Airman, Little Ashes, Remember Me and Bel Ami. Yes even our beloved Edward, I really wished (in Twilight) that they would have captured more of his tortured vampire side, his fight within.
Well, Mr. Rob Pattinson… please keep bringing us all your many facets into the brillant light, I for one will not look away.
He laughs, lightens up. “What if we were ‘acting’ like ‘Negroes? Then we’d be fucked—we couldn’t hear anything…”
WTF does that mean? Kizzie, please enlighten me, I am a person of color and I find that comment offensive. I don’t know why the writer brought it up, was it the setting, where there not any other black people around? Did she feel it was appropriate to say at that time.
Merci,
you should be asking the author of an article, not Kizzie. It is a strange comment and completely illogical in this context
@Merci…. I have no idea what he meant by that comment and I understand that the writer is Lena Horn’s granddaughter. I am a young black woman and I would not bring something like that up in any conversation. It was inappropriate for her to say, regardless if one of her grandparent’s were black. I think she needs to explain why that word was even mentioned, when she could have gone with any other comparison out there. I also think Robert needs to explain what he was thinking at the time he made his comment. Is he saying that were invisible, I didn’t understand the need for him to elaborate on that word.
I don’t think he meant for his comment to be hurtful, but it did hurt me. I loved coming to this sight, checking on all the good things that were happing for him. He seems like a nice guy, but people show you there true selves, and Robert hurt my feelings.
Okay. I have two theories with regard to the “allergic to vaginas” comment. One, either he was tired and just gave one of his “wasn’t really thinking/spoke before putting any thought into it” comments and will end up regretting it just like he did when he jokingly said that he rarely takes showers. That came back to bite him in the butt.
Two, and this theory I really hope is wrong, is that he’s gay. I hate the thought of him being gay (I want him!), but based on the fact that he said this, plus in another interview he spoke of having a love scene with a woman and he said “I’ve never even had a real one with a woman” and then cut himself off and changed the subject. Another plus is that he was willing to perform the gay love scenes in Little Ashes. My personal opinion is (and I’m sure many, many, many of you will disagree but that’s fine) is that any actor that performs a gay love scene is either gay, bi or very curious about that type of relationship. They use the excuse that it was done for “artistic purposes” but I just think that that is a load of crap. You couldn’t pay me enough money to do it with a woman, simply because it’s not my thing. Would you do it with an animal (donkey, dog, etc.)? Probably (hopefully) not. Why? Because it’s not your thing. Anyway, just my opinion and sorry if you are not in agreement, but c’est la vie. Once again, I hope my first theory is right, but I just don’t know.
I hate pricks myself …and I think he is one of them …he should be careful not to get a rush on his neck with that photo.. what is next …will she sit on his face….enough already… …
was Robert really hurting feelings?… he was told his voice was very quiet when he said acting or actor.. Jenny’s comparison led to him stating no-one would hear anything at all if he put those two words together… and as Leslie stated… why am I the one to be clarifying that ..?.. I can only give you my opinion Merci… the same as anyone else..
Gay?……luckiest bastard on the planet gets to spend 12 hours with two gorgeous naked women…’I hate vagina’s”….. a little bit of British sarcasm ?.. don’t you think?… *the same way he doesn’t shower.. he hates children… etc ‘… so many heterosexual actors play gay roles.. Charlize Theron in Monster, Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brokeback Mountain, Al Pacino in Cruising, I could go on and on….maybe they do these roles to challenge themselves..or to bring a great story to the screen… or even just to pay the bills!… I believe actors take these roles when they are pretty secure in knowing who they are in themselves…. as for ‘trying it out onscreen’ because they are ‘curious’? not sure anyone would put themselves out there infront of a camera crew etc to fulfil their curiosity. THere are more private places to experiment…
Context and intonation play a vital role in interviews……. as we’ve seen time and time before..
I still love this interview.. it’s raw and right there… photo’s are stunning. I’d hang one on my wall!
and yes.it was.. “Jenny Lumet’ who brought up the comparison….
Just wondering why the vagina comment can’t have just been Rob trying to make light of the situation He said it was somewhat uncomfortable for him to be with these women who were naked for extended periods of time and he’s said before during press for LA that he is not comfortable with overt sexuality. And really, how many people would be completely comfortable with hanging out with naked members of the opposite sex, complete strangers at that, for long periods of time for a photo shoot, etc. if that was not what you normally did? I know I wouldn’t.
Anyway, I think it was a fascinating interview, and honestly I just love him more for it. He’s beautiful and brilliant and I think there’s a lot more to him than anyone realizes.
I wasn’t aware of the ‘overt sexuality’ comment Chasing Butterflies… thanks for pointing it out… Maybe too much is read into his comments.. maybe these comments are just over analysed (I’m totally guilty for doing it)… … for someone so uncomfortable I wonder why he chose to do this photo shoot then?…. If being hungover made it easier for him?.. did he want people to see him as something so far removed from Edward Cullen that he had no option but to do this?
not sure..
but like you, I love this interview.. this photo shoot and everything about Robert Pattinson.. and I absolutely agree he is beautiful, brilliant and complex.. and I think too.. there is so much more to him … and probably he doesn’t realise it himself either.
I have to agree with Kizzie with regard to feeling uncomfortable if forced to hang out for hours upon hours with naked people. I mean, think about it. What if you had to just sit there with a bunch of guys and their dingalings flip flopping about. Where do you look? You want to look at it, but at the same time, you don’t. He probably made the comment after having to look at their vajayjay’s all day long. Anyone would be sick and tired and possibly become “allergic” to it by then.
Now, with regard to actors “challenging” themselves by playing and participating in homosexual roles/acts, I don’t buy it. It’s so not necessary. There are a tremendous amount of talented homosexual actors out there that could and probably would want to take on those roles. And as far as my “curiosity” theory goes, I believe that for an actor that doesn’t want to be officially “outed”, this is the best way. They have the best excuse for doing it. If they were to try to satisfy their curiousity in real life, there is no such thing as privacy for them. Believe me, TMZ would be on their asses within seconds.
Kizzie – I don’t remember which interview it was, but the jist of it was based on his observations of the Spanish people (in Spain where LA was filmed) being more open and comfortable with their sexuality than Brits were. He commented that within his upbringing, it was something more private and it took him some getting used to. And yes, I think people do read WAY TOO MUCH into what he says. I mean come on, the guy has an incredibly dry sense of humor. This is nothing new, so why should we suddenly be surprised when he says something that was obviously not meant to be serious.
I do wonder how much input he does or doesn’t have in terms of which interviews/photo shoots he does. Did he elect to do this? I don’t remember if the article said either way.
@Emma.. while I completely respect your point of view.. and that is what I love about this site..(being able to make our own point of views heard without being attacked and to make good discussion)… I would like to point out that, although there probably are many talented homosexual actors out.. .they aren’t as crowd drawing as some of the high profile heterosexual actors… those names put butts on seats.. and curiosity from fans to see their favourite celebs in these roles pumps up the numbers too… stories are written to be read or seen on the big screen..movie companies want big box office sales… so they put big names in their movies….. as for why Rob was chosen for Little Ashes?.. who knows.. is his co-star an out homosexual?.. Is Rob homosexual.?.. Has he been hiding it behind his ‘relationsihp’ with Kristen?.. I personally don’t think so. I see it as Rob being a little bit more aware of himself than the average 23 year old.. and actually many who are a lot older than him… if Zac Efron were to portray a gay character, I would probably think he was curious… but because of Rob’s intellect and grounded, personality.. I do believe he did it because he was fascinated by the role of Salvador Dali.. whom he’s probably read about for years…since he found out as a kid he designed the label for “Chupa Chups’…. (just kidding).. anyway.. I don’t presume anyone to be gay or bi curious when they choose homosexual roles…
as for TMZ… how many photo’s have we had of Rob since CHristmas?… barely any.. there is always somewhere to go for privacy…
I thought he mentioned taking the Dali role because he wanted a vacation in Spain. He hadn’t had work for a long time and he was offered a role. I doubt he was thinking it would put his sexuality in question….at the time, no one even cared WHO he was. It was a job.
The part about “negro” reminded of me of how people whisper the word “cancer”. I think the author meant to convey that he was dropping his tone and whispering when he said “acting”. I personally think he’s a bit embarrassed about being an actor still. He likes to consider himself talented and perhaps “acting” isn’t the best display of his gifts. He’s not convinced that he’s a good actor yet though I think he has a lot of potential if he makes wise choices in his roles from now on.
I love that he says what he feels even though it isn’t wise. He’s not a fluff piece. He’s not going to say the right things in interviews. Probably he’s just talking “off the cuff” a lot and it’s not even something he’s put a lot of thought into. I’m not putting too much weight onto anything he says, just enjoying him sharing himself with us a bit.
I love your posts rae.. and think you’ve summed up everything I wanted to say.. *which I tried to do in vain …….
@Rae, I understand what you mean about the word “cancer”. My question is…. then why was that word not used. I grew up in a place where I was more of a minority then the majority, in my whole graduating class there was, 4 of us. I don’t expect anyone to understand, but the comment, whether introduced by the author or not, was inappropriate, and he should have thought about what he was going to say before he said it.
I enjoyed the interview up until that point, I did understand what he was trying to convey, but my point is it should have been deflected by him. Words hurt, and when you are someone that is admired by many people of all ethnic backgrounds, you are responsible for what comes out of your mouth. I would like an explanation from him, in what he meant. I am still a fan, but I believe everyone has a right to explain themselves when something has been interrupted (in many people’s opinions as an unnecessary comparison)
@Kizzie, I asked you specifically because from your comments you seem be impartial and I respect your opinion.
I have said my peace and I am moving on.
Bravo Rae, Bravo!
@Rae, so are you saying that it was okay for him to refer to “negros” and “acting” and compare it or (black people), which the word has been referenced to in America, as being f**k and no one hears them?
I am just asking, because I would like know how this can be spun into something that puts him in a more postive light.
@Kizzie, and for you to dismiss Leslie’s feelings, to me seems insensative. You don’t know what people have experienced. I sympothize with her, I may not understand completely, but I am not going to ignore how she may have felt. We are so quick to back up someone we know nothing about but in interviews, but not personally. I don’t beleive he’s a racist, but if he indeed hurt some feelings with that comment, then he needs to realize that and apologize. That will be his true test of character.
Just because I respect him as an actor, doesn’t mean I have to fall all over him as a person, I don’t know him and don’t claim to.
i think what ROb was trying to say with the “actor/Negro” comment, was that, because Negro is such a derogatory racial word, he seems to feel the same about the word, actor…..therefore saying it in a quieter manner……..so if he had to use both words in one sentence, he wouldn’t be able to hear himself say it, because these are two words he doesn’t particularly like saying. And I find it offensive for this interviewer to even bring up the Negro word and putting ROb in a spot like that……..not cool at all…..she seems to say things to get a reaction out of him …..I really don’t think ROb meant anything derogatory by what he said………but this is just my opinion of what I think he meant.
@Michelle
Couldn’t have said it better myself…in fact I’ve made this point on other sites over the weekend. It was Jenny Lumet herself who initially used THAT word and if there is any apologising/explaining to do then in MY opnion it is her who needs to explain why she introduced that word in the first place and how SHE interepreted his answer. If you go over to the Details site and read the comments, there is a wonderful, rational, intelligent comment made there by a black lady amidst all the myriad opinions. Just read it….wonderful…would like to shake her hand.
To all right and refelcting things that were said I just want to add, that Rob is a human. Nasty jokes or rather inappropiate comments about fringe groups is something each of you, including me, has done. I am pretty sure about that. And that does not mean, it was meant serious.
I heard jokes about disabled persons, jews, black people, white people, Germans, etc. – and I laughed about it. Just as I heard severe or sarcastic comments about these topics.
However, this does not mean I am a bad person or a racist or something. I can laugh about myself and others, its just not my real opinion or corresponds my true attitude. My father is physically disabled, so I know how serious this topic is. Nevertheless, it feels good to laugh about it once in a while – together with my dad and my mom.
Just want to say – though it might not be the best idea to do it in an interview – it doesnt make you a racist or a bad person when you comment sarcastically on difficult subjects.
Maybe I’m not seeing it. I still think the comment has more to do with the actual dropped tone of voice. If actors are dropping their tone and whispering their words than no one is going to hear their voices, like on stage or in a production. I don’t know why the author picked the word ‘negro’. She was pointing out to Rob that he was whispering when he said ‘acting’. I’ve heard people drop their tones when they mention ‘gays’ in the same manner.
To me, Rob is young. It’s hard to make a stand against others comments. It’s much easier to laugh it off and move along. When someone says something questionable you wonder if they are being serious, if they are trying to offend. You don’t want to offend them if they didn’t mean anything by it. He’ll get there. Rob is warm, sweet, sensitive person and he’ll reach the point where he can “man up” and stand up for his opinions and values without worrying about being polite to the interviewer. He’ll understand that once it’s printed it goes beyond a one-on-one interview and is reveiwed and reflected upon by the masses. So it’s important to correct the interviewer and make sure his true feelings are reported. He’s not there yet. I know he will get there.
I’m not a Kristen fan but there’s an interview in the French studio that is one of my favorites. And they ask about who’s better Rob or Zac and Kristen just clams up and clamps her mouth shut and shakes her head and refuses to answer. She’s not derogatory towards others and I think Rob admires that about her. She’s younger than him and even though she doesn’t know how to turn it around gracefully, back onto the reporter, she is strong willed enough to clamp her mouth shut and not say anything to regret. (Yes, I know in this interview they were in a room with questions on the wall and no direct interviewer but she does the same thing in an interview with Chuck the movie guy when he says something mean about Evan Rachel Wood and Chuck says the same comment to Rob and Rob just laughs it off along with Chuck).
He’ll get there. I love him as a person, he has great potential.
@rae.. again..love your posts.. we think the same way…
and thanks Merci.. glad you think my posts aren’t biased…
@gallia… yes. you are probably right.. I am very insensitive towards other people.. just read my other posts and you will see that I attack everyone at every given opportunity…
I thought some of you might be interested in reading the following post by an African American Robert Pattinson fan.. It is posted on the DETAILS website…
As a person of color, I took absolute NO OFFENSE of Rob’s comment regarding “Negroes”. Let’s not forget that the interviewer is an African American woman. If you read the entire interview, you will realize that he did NOT say anything racist. Also, please do not take his comment regarding vaginas or negroes out of context? If you were surrounded by naked women for 12 hours, believe me you would say the same thing. That being said, I found this interview wonderful. It was insightful, intelligent, and funny. Robert Pattinson isn’t just a pretty face, he has a wonderful mind and talent. This interview is the reason why I am a fan of his. He’s no cookie cutter Hollywood pretty boy: he’s unpredictable, no verbal filter, and is not afraid to be different. Kudos to Details for this delightful interview, and for allowing fans to catch a glimpse of the mind of this intelligent young man. I’m truly proud to be a Robert Pattinson fan/
the vagina remark is an English joke
doctor doctor i think vagina’s give me a rush..why do you think that son,,
because every time i see one i swelled up and i have to rub….more or less that is the joke ..lol..
Yep.. you’re right about that part Fluffgirl…….. the way Rob’s words are misinterpreted and over analysed I wouldn’t be surprised if he stopped giving them at all..
Hey guys check this out:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gossip/2010/02/robert-pattinson-details-magazine-interview.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
About the “vagina” comment, those who missed the joke there read again.. at the end he said “Thank God I was hungover.” — because IF NOT…you know…. hahaha…i can’t believe im explaining this…im still young but i got it coz i heard a lot of times with my guy friends… HE IS NOT GAY! and he woudn’t have outed himself, “if he is”, in the middle of his blossoming career… a little common sense might help…
And about the “negro” thing… if you’re really a fan you wouldn’t think he’s racist coz in the first place it was the writer who brought up the word first…stop being overlysensitive, i am not white myself…. but c’mon…. the reaction is beyond ridiculous….
Ann.. I think I’ve just posted the same article! ha…
I loved the way the reporter summed this DETAILS interview up…. and had to post it here too….
Well done for stating what you did.. I am in total agreement….
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gossip/2010/02/robert-pattinson-details-magazine-interview.html
I told everyone that Rob is gay but no one believed me. Every interview he’s had, he has hinted to not liking girls. For promotion of The Twilight saga they made him and Kristen have people think they were involve to keep up the image of Edward and Bella. Rob is more fruity then a fruit cake, but I Still like his movies. What straight man has issues with naked females.
Maybe we should all stop overanalyzing and just enjoy the man, the actor, the human being. Some of us tend to forget that he is just that. A human being capable of making mistakes just like the rest of us do. Gay or straight. Who cares? Doesn’t change the man himself. Let’s just let the 23 year old be a 23 year old. He’ll learn from his mistakes and hopefully learn from them. Being in the public eye must be difficult and having to watch every word that comes out of your mouth for fear of them being misconstrued; well, just imagine what that must be like.
What I meant to say was that he’ll learn from his mistakes and hopefully not repeat them in the future. Sorry, the Olympics were on and I was distracted for just a bit! Go USA!
Well, i think Rob did “Little Ashes” mostly to pay the bills. A lot of actors do roles that they are not personally passionate about, but they do the role anyway since it’s better than nothing. He was struggling to get work at that time.
As far as the “vagina comment”, i don’t know what to think. I say that because even though Rob does seem to make sarcastic comments, i don’t know Rob very well. Heck, i don’t know him at all !!! So, i can’t say what he meant. I thought it was a strange crude comment to say the least. Some women will not like him for it which is understandable. He really should either explain his comments, or somehow let people know if he really is attracted to women. I myself don’t know yet, but he is young. He says stupid things especially when drinking alcohol. Why he did that during an interview i don’t know. Where was his manager?
Also, I don’t think the photoshoot was a good idea. Maybe he is too young and not ready for that. Everything looked so forced. He didn’t look at his best in the shoot, and especially since he doesn’t really know how to handle vagina.
@debbie..I beg to differ with you about Rob and “Little Ashes”. He is very passionate about his work and I doubt he would accept any movie script just to “pay the bills”.
Oh and hi there to you all…….esp Kizzie and Emma!! Seems our IT dept sensed I was going into
RPWHO withdrawal, felt a little sympathy(they would never know what it actually feels like!)
and let us have access to the blocked sites again…I missed you guys and this site terribly!!!
but now I’m back and got a lot of catching up to do since the 24th of Feb, when I was banned!
LOL!!
Welcome back Michelle! We missed you!
Thanx Emma………..
*Sigh* Is it just me, or is everyone just getting bit over-excited about the ‘I hate vagina’s’ comment??
Trust me, as a British myself, who has a dry, sarcastic sense of humor, I read that comment for exactly what it was…….humor!!!
I think we all need to keep in mind that tab-mags report things which we should ALWAYS take with a pinch of salt!!
Written interviews can always be taken in a different context to how the spoken ones can. Written interviews will have comments, words and/or lines added in by the writer to lengthen the article (don’t forget they, journalists I mean, have a certain amount word limits they have to reach!), whereas the spoken interviews (video), although can be edited, can be more raw and revealing and in some cases more truthful!!
C’mon ppl, lets just enjoy the perfection that is Rob…..my personal fav picture is the one of him in the white suit with the blue sky background…..his expression – YUM!
Fruit Cakes are quite addictive and my mom always bake them every month.-~~
Fruit Cakes are the specialty of my grandmother, she bakes lots of fruit cakes.~-*