December 10

Source: Entertainment Tonight

December 10, 2001

Russell's Head Games
By Mark Steines

Mark Steines: Give me a 10-second idea of what this movie is about.

RC: Although on the surface it would appear to be an earnest Hollywood effort about genius madness and a fellow who wins a Nobel Prize, it's a much more human story than that.

It is a romance that spans five decades [and] the nurturing and the love that is contained within that romance. But at a certain point, the reality that you have fed the audience changes.

MS: I had a chat with Ron Howard [the director], who said he was surprised to hear in an e-mail from you that you actually had difficulties letting go of the role. How difficult was it for you to shake it off?

RC: When I look back on this experience, the thing that resonates most with me is the calmness on the set. Ron is a very organized filmmaker, he knows what he wants and he's very specific. I am constantly amused by the fact that everybody considers him to be this simple, easygoing guy when in fact he is a very intense man.

His level of intellect is a delight to be around. He has a very challenging and insightful mind and really creates a platform for his performers so the actual energy on the set is very calm. But you can't help the fact that there are concepts within film that, when they are inside your own mind, you start breaking them down and maybe applying those same things to yourself.

MS: Your love relationship onscreen is quite unique in terms of the fact that your wife, played by Jennifer Connelly, is so deeply in love -- or partially insane herself -- as to be able to stay with Nash when he becomes mentally ill! What makes that relationship work?

RC: I think you have answered that question yourself -- love. This kind of full nurturing, loving relationship goes on all the time. It's just not necessarily the subject of a feature film or not what makes drama for feature films.

The fact [is] that these two people are committed to each other and Alicia Nash stayed with her husband, even though he wanted the relationship to end at a certain point because of his disease.

If your're going to commit to marriage, then it shouldn't be, "Well, I'll see how this goes." My mom and dad just celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary and if I'm going to get married, that's what I'd be looking for.

MS: It's got to be tough in your situation, or for any celebrity -- all of the sudden, everyone is looking into your business! It's a lot to bring someone into a relationship. How do you deal with that?

RC: Right. Well, by no means is there a simple answer to that. I am still actively looking for my life partner and I may or may not be lucky enough to find that person. So, we will just see.

The unfortunate thing for me is [that] with the way this [gossip] machine operates these days, it totally needs to be fed continuously. I bought a house in Italy, apparently. I have had a number of children with different women over the last 18 months [also according to the media]. In fact, at one point in time every woman I talked to I [supposedly] impregnated. So I [must have] the most fertile breath in the business!

MS: Would you say that's the price? You can say, "I've got the Oscar" and I know you're pursuing directing. But when you look around, has it been worth it?

RC: The position I am in, I get to look at the greatest material available. I get the opportunity to work with the best filmmakers in the business, so I am working at the highest level in the most elusive art form that exists. So I will allow a certain percentage of bullshit.

People say to me, "Why don't you just stop talking to the media," because therefore, all this stuff would stop. But that's not correct: It's just I am the coat hanger [the attention] is stuck on. So from a personal satisfaction point of view, in terms of my job, I couldn't be in a better position.

And all of that work is definitely worth it. There is a toll on your personal life and your family -- this is something that you'd never assume. You'd never assume your niece is going to spend X amount of days in school being hassled because some crap was printed [about you] in a magazine.

But if you allow it to be divisive, it will be divisive. In my family, it has brought us together.