STACK New Zealand December Issue 69

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I loved it! One of the first things I ever
did was play Gaston in Beauty and the
Beast, and it was so much fun. I got to
be as arrogant as possible for two hours
every night, and it was a bit like that
with Blackbeard. I probably chewed the
scenery a little bit, but just putting on
those costumes and wigs and having
swordfights… it was a dream kind of role.
And I don’t get asked to play [the villain]
that often, so when someone like Joe
Wright asks you to do that, I just leapt at it.
How do you think audiences will
respond to Pan, given it’s a bit left of
centre?
I judge very much from my
own family; my kids and their
friends who have seen it, they
absolutely loved it. I think,
particularly for kids, it’s got that
sense of magic and wonder. What
I felt as an adult watching it, and I told
Joe this after I saw it, it kind of made
me feel like a little kid again – a sense
of opening up my eyes and my heart to
a sense of wonder. So I hope people
really like it. Visually, it’s incredibly
stunning and certainly it’s a world like
you’ve never seen before.
you’re not going to have many filming
days like this, where hundreds of people
are looking up at you as we sing Nirvana’s
Teen Spirit’. That was not in the script,
actually, nor was [The Ramones] Blitzkrieg
Bop. It was just an invention Joe had
during rehearsals; in Joe’s mind there are
no rules. This is Neverland – the rules we
have are that adults have to be frightening
and ridiculous, ‘cause that’s how kids
see them. And that we’re really telling
a coming-of-age story of this young boy
called Peter.
Pan’s depiction of Neverland is darker
than Spielberg’s and Disney’s. It’s
almost like a steampunk,Tim Burton-
esque version…
I agree. It feels like a kaleidoscope to
me. The native forest is very colourful and
the pageantry is there. Then you go into
Blackbeard’s quarters, where his mood
can become very dark and sad, and a little
lonely. Joe likes to push the boundaries;
kids see it at their level and adults see it
at theirs – that’s the beauty of it. I only
recently read the book, and reading Peter
Pan as an adult, it’s incredibly poignant and
quite sad, actually.
So the book wasn’t something you’d
read or discovered as a boy?
I did, but I don’t remember when. I
don’t know if the book was read to me or
if it was the animated movie. I knew the
story. Then, as I was growing up, there
was the Spielberg version, then later the
P.J. Hogan version. I’ve seen it a lot, I know
it, but when I read the book as an adult, it
really sat with me, the idea of keeping a
childlike spirit when looking at the
world – that’s the key, really. No
matter how mature or responsible
you are in life, keeping that sense of
wonder and possibility, fearlessness
and adventure, is actually what it’s
all about.
Blackbeard’s the villain, but he
also comes across as a tragic figure. Is
that how you saw the character?
He’s a show pony who loves a moment
to perform, but he’s actually quite sad and
lonely, and frightened. I loved that Joe was
pushing me to bring all those sides out.
The one thing in life that you want may
be the thing that you’re frightened of, and
vice versa. There’s a prophecy about this
boy who could fly, who will come one day
to lead an uprising against Blackbeard.
He’s this king and nobody can topple him,
and the moment he sees this boy, he’s
frightened and actually a little excited,
because his life is a bit boring.
You look like you relished playing
a villain for a change…
I probably chewed the
scenery a little bit
with HUGH JACKMAN
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