15 / 64
CINEMA
interview
15
strange form of relaxation – your mind
just adapts to what you're doing and
you stop worrying about everything
else that's going on in your life,” he
explains.
With several major
films in post-production,
including the lead role
in
Steve Jobs
, who
Fassbender says was
“an extraordinary man,
who changed the
way we live on so
many levels,” as well
as reprising his role as Magneto in
X-Men:
Apocalypse
, we can expect to see more much
more of this charming and mercurial actor
over the coming year.
But just what is it that draws him to playing
men who seem forever doomed?
“It might be because I'm really mad
myself!” he laughs. “But I'm not mad enough
to allow that to destroy myself. I think we're
all a little mad and it's more interesting to
acknowledge and portray madness than to
ignore it. If you look at how we behave on
this planet, there is no doubt that madness is
everywhere...”
“I
'm happy in my skin,
and I never think about
whether my characters are
unsympathetic or tormented in terms
of wanting to play those kinds of
roles. I look at every part as a way
of expressing different aspects of
their humanity,” explains Michael
Fassbender, when asked about the
contradiction of being seen as a sex
symbol, when most of the characters
he plays are complex and even
contemptible. “The whole notion of
being a sex symbol is a bit frightening
and ridiculous – although it suits me!”
he adds, laughing.
His next role is certainly no
different, as he takes on one of
Shakespeare’s most tragic anti-
heroes: Macbeth. Directed by
Australia’s own Justin Kurzel and
starring Gallic goddess Marion
Cotillard as Lady Macbeth, it is a rare
opportunity to bring one of The Bard’s
most famous plays to the big screen.
Since his 2006 Hollywood debut
as a young Spartan warrior in
300
,
Fassbender’s career has gone from
strength to strength. From embarking
on a 600 calories-a-day diet to play
hunger-striking IRA prisoner Bobby
Sands in
Hunger
, for which he won
a British Independent Film Award for
Best Actor, to taking on the world
as the younger incarnation of super
mutant Magneto in the blockbuster
X-Men
franchise, Fassbender has the
kind of bankability and diversity that is
incredibly rare.
Shakespeare, however, is a new challenge
altogether. "It was a rare privilege for me to be
able to do a Shakespeare play, and
Macbeth
happens to be my favourite of his works. Both
the language itself and the character are so
daunting that it's almost as if you're being
dared to take it on. I like taking risks, and this
was one I couldn't pass up," says the
actor.
`Challenges don’t phase
Fassbender, and even when he’s
not acting, the daredevil star
loves chasing adrenalin highs.
Often seen riding his motorbike,
he was recently spotted at the
Monaco Grand Prix with his
stunning Swedish actress girlfriend,
Alicia Vikander. For him, motorsports
are more than just a thrill: he
uses speed as a survival tool to
find control and calm amidst
the intense chaos of Hollywood
superstardom.
“Being on a motorbike and
concentrating while you're going
as fast as possible is also a
I like taking risks,
and [Macbeth]
was one I couldn't
pass up.
Steve Jobs
Macbeth
300
Hunger
X-Men: Days of Future Past
•
Macbeth
is in cinemas on
October 1