Page 1 / 2 / 3- Home

AE: You’ve said you’ve never regretted choosing any role. Why?
JI: I don’t find it life-enhancing to regret. Or envy. I find it a negative energy that has no place in my life. I believe we are what we are, we do what we do, because it seems the best thing at that moment. I stand by those choices and never look back. I’ve been incredibly fortunate in my career—I work with wonderful people, had some wonderful experiences. I have a fantastic wife and family. I’d be a fool to live with regret.

AE: Surely you’d admit that some of your films are less great than others.
JI: As a general rule in our business, the less meritorious the film, the more it pays you. I’ve tried to find a balance of doing movies that appeal to me while still earning enough to live.

I’m more interested in practicing my craft than making films per se. Filming is actually quite a protracted, boring process. There’s a lot of waiting around and a lot of time spent away from those you love. So unless you’re passionate about the role you’re playing, and the story you’re telling, it’s doubly hard.

That’s why I’m attracted to those roles. Sometimes movies don’t work and audiences don’t want to go to see them. But one lives in hope. It’s very difficult to do it the other way round where you chase what you think are going to be popular films and play characters that bore the pants off you. You never can predict what works and what won’t work.

AE: You are known for your memorable lines. In Reversal of Fortune, it was “You have NO idea.” In Callas you sneer, “Oh God. You’re not one of those ghastly Callas queens, are you?” Do you look for those zingers when choosing a script?
JI: Sometimes you see a line in a script that reads very well but it doesn’t play well, and vice versa. That’s all part of the alchemy of filmmaking. Those lines reverberate when the writer, director, actor and situation coalesce. As an actor you need the timing to make a line work, but the director has to give it space. I help by delivering it. I throw a good dart, so to speak.

AE: You and Zeffirelli are friends. Was it difficult to be directed by a friend, especially given his penchant of being a bit, shall we say, feisty?
JI: He is feisty. I was expecting a rocky ride but it was an extraordinary happy shoot that I remember with great affection. He trusted my completely that I knew what I was doing. He knew that Fanny and I worked well together. He and I were on exactly the same wavelength.

AE: Do you think Zeffirelli succeeded in crafting a fictional story about a cultural icon who really existed?Z
JI: Certainly. What transpires in the movie never happened in life, but it nearly happened. Franco always regretted it never came together. I think the film tells as much about him as about Callas. He was writing a story about what creativity is, what genius is, and how it impacts those lucky enough to be touched by it.

AE: Are you a bit of a diva yourself?
JI: No. I really don’t think we have acting divas these days. I have my feet planted firmly on the ground. [pause] I wish I had a bit of diva in me, in a way.

Page 1 / 2 / 3- Home