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Where do you draw the line with being cute?
I don't try to be cute. I never have. I don't know what that would feel like and it would probably feel pretty darn phony. So I'm not going to ever try it out because it doesn't really sound appealing to me. I think you are what you are. I am an actor and I portray other people for a living. And my job, I believe, is to believe I'm other people and there's a camera that records that. The camera doesn't lie. So as far as physical comedy is concerned, it comes pretty naturally because I'm a bit of a klutz. This is my 31st film and a lot of them weren't romantic comedies. And I love the genre, I've always loved watching it, but it's not a particular genre that I would only do the rest of my life. The last film I made was with the lovely Robert Rodriguez, called "Sin City." It was very different from this film. And the next one I'm about to do is called "Never Was" and it's with Sir Ian McKellen and Jessica Lange in it, and Nick Nolte and Aaron Eckhart. It's a lovely ensemble. I actually play a journalist from the New York Times.
Are you taking notes while we talk for research?
No. I'm sipping on coffee, eating cheese and crackers and French fries.
What is your character in "Sin City?"
My character's name is Shelly and she's a she's a waitress in Old Town, it's called. She's the only character that's in all three of the stories that Robert is filming. But the main chunk of what I filmed was the beginning of the last story in the three series, which is called "The Big Fat Kill."
What is it like working with Rodriguez?
It is a dream working environment. You are immersed in this lovely atmosphere of creativity flowing everywhere and he is open to showing you other people's work and teaching you, and he keeps the camera rolling because he's working on digital. In between scenes and during rehearsal and he could give direction in the middle and he works on a series, which is when you do a scene or a line over and over and over, which I love, and getting different performances whether it's laughing or crying, saying the same line. You don't know whatever he's going to cut together and I love it when the characters are surprises. He's built his production company with his wife, Elizabeth. He's built an environment for himself that's absolutely stunning. I love working there. I'd work there any day of the week.
Was Carly Simon supposed to do a new song for "Little Black Book?"
I have no idea. I know she's doing a greatest hits album. I wasn't a formal producer, I wasn't privy to this. I know there was a moment where we were going to record a song together. We both found out in such short notice that we didn't want to, either one of us, creatively compromise the song, so we decided not to do it because we were working on different coasts. We would've had to do it in one session a week ago and not collaborate. It was a song that was a work in progress, but I think Carly, I'm not sure, I haven't gotten a chance to speak with her lately, but I believe it will be on her greatest hits album. The last time I heard, I think she recorded it and it's a really great song. But I had absolutely nothing to do with the selection of songs that they used in the film aside from the fact that it was Carly. That was myself and Elaine Goldsmith Thomas. It was both of our ideas. It was actually my mom's idea and Elaine was very open too as well as Nick Curran to it being a very open atmosphere for creative input. It was quite dreamy in that sense. Now, having the Carly aspect of it all, I can't get enough of Carly, so her greatest hits album is available now I believe. And her music is just as relevant today as it was 25 years ago when she wrote some of the songs. What an incomparable human being. She's just as brilliant as - I know she's an icon, but she's just as brilliant as being a human, a wonderful human as she is at being an iconoclastic singer/songwriter. And I feel really grateful that she lent her extraordinary talent to this film.
Was there any discussions about making sure you're not making paranoia and distrust seem cool?
That really wasn't my job. Yes, there were creative discussions involving that and because of that, we did shoot different versions of the ending of the film. Of the ending and of also after the surprise turn in the third act. We shot different versions of that where Stacy and Joyce have another scene together, where Stacy views something.
Maybe those scenes will be on the DVD?
I would really love it. One of them ended up in the preview. Two lines from one scene. In these movies, I don't have a say in what happens afterwards until I'm able to produce, which is something that I love doing. It's thrilling to me, but on this project, I was able to be a part of it but almost as an intern to Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas and Nick Hurran and Red Om Productions. Elaine knew that I love producing so she in the beginning said to me, “I will teach you everything that I know and you can be a part of anything from location scouting, creative input, writing and casting sessions.” And I was there for about 90% of the casting sessions, LA and New York. But I'm an uncredited ghost producer that was very silent. For me, it was very much an internship as a producer which I learned such a great deal from, but when you're doing that, obviously one doesn't have the final say in the big stuff which is editing and while we were filming. I didn't have the final say in a lot of things obviously. I never had the final say, but I wasn't the producer so I didn't expect that. I was so grateful with just being able to learn what I could.
One day, we might see 'Brittany Murphy Presents'?
It would BAM Productions. And most definitely. I really can't wait to produce films for other people, other actors. There's so many things and the production company, fortunately now, we're working out of my basement in my old house and now we're working out of a little teeny weeny office, but it's growing slowly but surely. I really just love it and getting to do these pitch meetings is fantastic and I love the business side of things. I was brought up with a really strong work ethic from a working class background, so that intrigued me. It does not intrigue me to be an actor that has their name on a picture. I would like to be a hand on producer, and that's what I will be when I do produce one day. And I hope you like whatever films comes out of the production company.
"LITTLE BLACK BOOK" RESOURCES:
"Little Black Book" Photo Gallery
"Little Black Book" Credits, Trailer and Websites
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