A couple of weeks ago, I had the amazing opportunity to interview Chris Pine on the red carpet at the Texas premiere of his new film HELL OR HIGH WATER. Since I hadn’t yet seen the film, I asked him a few general questions, and all the hubbub forced us to keep our chat extremely brief. Despite this, I was delighted by his thoughtful answers as well as the relatively good amount of time he spent with me. I hope you enjoy our quick back and forth!
(Photo Credit- Christine Thompson)
Rebecca Elliott: You have another smallish film in theaters right now…
Chris Pine: Yes! The poster is up right behind you (points to STAR TREK BEYOND poster displayed in the lobby of the Alamo Drafthouse).
RE: Indeed it is!
(At this point a publicist interrupted our interview so that Pine could take a cast picture on the red carpet. As the flash bulbs blinded us all, I got a bit nervous that he might not return with all the hugging, backslapping, and general love going on between the reunited cast and crew members, but soon enough I was relieved to have the megastar appear once again in front of me to continue our talk.)
RE: As I was saying…you have another film in theaters right now. As an actor, what are the differences between working on a blockbuster versus working on a smaller film like HELL OR HIGH WATER?
CP: You would assume that the blockbuster is a lot bigger, and there’s a lot more money. Which I think for me…the thing you feel the most is that there are a lot more people around watching you whereas with an independent it feels a lot more mobile.
RE: So as an actor you have more freedom?
CP: It depends on the kind of actor you are, but I think for me what I like about the smaller films- kinda of like a troubadour group in the middle ages- you know everybody, you can try shit. You can risk failure, and it just feels a bit more intimate I guess.
RE: Just one more quick question, and you know I have to ask…what can you tell me about WONDER WOMAN?
CP: From what you saw in the trailer, I was just so stoked that the trailer matched the excitement. It’s much like this film (points to HELL OR HIGH WATER poster) in a way. The experience of making it was so much fun, all you wish for as an actor- since you have no control- is that the result is some kind of version of the fun you had. WONDER WOMAN is really- and I don’t want to oversell it- the beauty that you saw in that trailer, the kind of technical acumen that was displayed there on all kinds of levels, especially with the directing and producing and what Gal did…I’m telling you it was there and in spades.
RE: Yay!!!!
CP: Yeah, you couldn’t ask for a better middle-of-the-zeitgeist moment for a movie like this, and I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of it and to support, again, really nice people. I like them as human beings, so I’m happy for them- for Gal and for Patty.
RE: Great! Thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate it.
CP: Thank you.
Pine was immediately whisked away by a publicist for another cast picture, and I soon realized that my interview was the very last one he gave for the evening. I’m so glad he came back to talk to me after the interruption, and I hope you enjoyed our super quick chat.
For Austin locals, Uncle Billy's Brewery and Smokehouse is offering a limited run of it's "Hell or High Water" Texas LAWger in honor of the film's opening. Like the film, the special brew is an ode to Texas and will be available starting August 12 at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar location as well as Uncle Billy's while supplies last.
Until next time...
Rebecca Elliott
aka Annette Kellerman
