Renee Zellweger’s press conference for the romantic comedy Leatherheads in which she plays a reporter caught in a love triangle while looking for a scoop on a war hero, took place right after actor/director George Clooney’s finished up, leaving Zellweger to joke about how tough an act he is to follow. “Well first of all, I'd just like to say, lucky me to get to follow George Clooney. That's great. Nothing like George to warm things up for you! He's always very funny,” laughed Zellweger, who then went on to promote Clooney’s article in Esquire magazine. “You have to read his Esquire. I read it on the plane coming over here last night and I laughed out loud. I did, with absolutely no consideration for the nappers adjacent. He's just so clever. He's my hero. I'd like to learn to have such grace in this business. I'm doing my best.”
Renee Zellweger Press Conference
Did you know you didn't look ‘contemporary’ before you came to Hollywood?
Renee Zellweger: “I didn't think about what I looked like growing up. At all. Ever. I was taught to much later in life. I didn't think about what I looked like. It didn't matter. I was very busy living my life this way, you know? And I didn't think about it so much when I got here, either. You know, I knew that I didn't look like ‘a movie star’. I know that I don't have those assets [laughing], so to speak. But it didn't bother me too much because it didn't seem that it was going to help me with what it was that I was hoping to do.”
And there's something more to playing period than just looking the part.
Renee Zellweger: “Well, I enjoy it. I love it. Because I find in my personal experience that the further removed the character's reality is from my own, the more fun it is and the easier it is to dip within that alternate reality. I just really enjoy it. I love it. In fact, I'm so much more comfortable in a corset or the '20s sort of drop waist dresses and the way of delivering that dialogue than just being the girl who kind of looks like me and who might have the same clothes in her wardrobe as I do. I don't feel comfortable. I don't feel safe playing the girl who looks like me. There's not enough to hide behind.”
Was Lexie really a girl of 1925?
Renee Zellweger: “Oh no, I'm sure she existed. Absolutely. Just fewer opportunities, I suppose, to express herself, and for us to see her, you know?”
How did you handle being the girl in this boys' club?
Renee Zellweger: “It was terrible, but somebody had to do it! [Laughing] I had a great time, are you kidding me? Those fellas are fantastic. And yeah, sure, it was a boys' club. It's funny that you say that. It really was. Most of this group worked together for years and years and years, and he's had the same friends for over 20 years, at least. And so it was really nice to be a part of that big, extended family. I had a great time at work. Who are we kidding?”
How was working with Clooney the director vs. Clooney the actor? Who was more difficult to work with?
Renee Zellweger: “I'd say they're equally impossible. It was just torture all the way around. Let's see...You know, that was a tough job. That's a really, really tough gig to have, because you have to be in completely the polar opposite place simultaneously in order to achieve what you're trying to do, in that you have to be cognizant of what's happening as the director watching, and you have to disappear and not pay attention in order to be part of this alternate reality you're trying to create. So good luck. But he did a great job. Focused and good at what he does. He's prepared. He knows what he's trying to achieve so he doesn't waste time. He's not indulgent. He's not insecure about it so we have to try everything 600,000 different ways in order to cover whatever it might be that he's forgetting. I don't know that I'd be able to separate one from the other.”
Did he surprise you in either role?
Renee Zellweger: “I gotta say no. I know he's a good actor. I think he's a wonderful performer. And I know he makes beautiful films. So no. Surprised me? I guess that he seemed to have the faculties of a much more experienced filmmaker might have surprised me. His confidence, and his level of preparation, and his clarity in terms of his vision. That might have surprised me. I wouldn't have known what to expect from that. But I knew he was going to do a good job.”
Can you talk about John Krasinski coming into his own? And was there much debate on the set amongst women about who was hotter between George and John?
Renee Zellweger: [Laughing] That was more on the streets. You know, you drive to work and there'd be the cheering section for George and the ‘I Love Johnny K’ signs everywhere. I think he's a wonderful person. Have you met him yet? Okay, he's funny and smart and charming and he's kind. I think he's very special. I think he's one of those that doesn't come along all the time. And I respect him. I think he's really good at what he does. So I enjoyed being at work with him a lot. It was just so fun. It was a lot of fun to watch him not really knowing how good he is, you know? And the scarier part is knowing what's in store for him, and remembering what that might have been like a long time ago with Mr. Cruise on the set. It was an interesting experience to have for pretty much the first time, I suppose, in that parallel way. But I'm happy for him, because he deserves good things.”
Page 2: Renee Zellweger on Comedy, the Dialogue, and the Wardrobe
