The Reason Kieran Culkin (True Pain) Was Afraid to Return to Work After Succession

Roman Roy Kieran Culkin V Continuity He’s already a character in television history. The 42-year-old actor went from strength to strength on the acclaimed series and dominated the final season, earning him an Emmy and a Golden Globe, among many other awards. The translator now faces his first project after completing this title. He does this with real painthe film is written, directed and stars Jesse Eisenberg.

Kieran Culkin gives life Benjia crazy, chaotic and incredibly honest man who travels with his cousin to Poland to discover his family’s past. They both go on a tour with other tourists and, inevitably, Benji He takes center stage with his behavior and disrespectful comments. A sensational work that brought the actor his second Golden Globe in a row and brought him as close as possible to the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. It is curious, however, that he was afraid to work in real pain.

Learn to unlearn

“I was actually very worried about starting something else right after Continuity. Because it completely changed the way I approach working on this show. Previously, I always prepared a lot, I learned my entire role by heart, I re-read the script 50 times. But Continuity It required a new approach, which scared me at first, but once I let myself relax and allowed this new way of working with new pages every day, I loved it and felt very free once I got used to it,” he admits . . Kalkin in an exclusive interview collected by Hipertextual.

“People always thought that [Succession] It was improv, and we took it as a compliment because it meant we were saying our lines like they were new, you know? But it was very scripted. I mean, everything was changed at the last minute, and we were always coming up with new ideas right before filming. So these offers were coming in all the time, and we were able to take them, act on them and withdraw them very quickly. But usually everything we wanted to say was written down. Really very well written. It was definitely not improvised. However, there was a place to play, so I could throw something at him. Sarah Snookfor example, and she responded to me immediately,” he explains. For the filming of the series, every day was a new adventure. But in real pain, Kieran Culkin He had to return to his usual work schedule.

“A new job came up and I have to admit that I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to fall back into old habits,” the actor then admits. Luckily he found himself in front of and behind the cameras with someone like Jesse Eisenberg. This served as support and assistance in realizing character Benji. “It took me a day or two to Jesse and we immediately found a path, a rhythm between us. And the script was perfect. There was nothing improvised, but when I said the line I would add different expressions or there would be noise or something. Benji said or did differently,” shows Kalkin. This was his salvation.

“It worked because [Benji] He was such a spontaneous and unpredictable character that I used him as part of the play. Jesse He allowed me as long as what I came up with seemed appropriate, true to what he Benji could,” says the translator. Thanks to his character, Kalkin was able to find escape routes for his instinct to give real pain that freshness that characterizes him so much.

Another scenario

Despite the fear of a new title after Continuity, Kieran Culkin chose real pain precisely because of what he could see in his script. “First of all, I laughed out loud, which rarely happens to me. When I read it, it was very well written. And I thought, “Yeah, I got this guy,” and it was great. But then you think that I “You know and you know how he will react and then it will be spontaneous and completely surprise you. So that takes it to another level of writing,” he tells us.

Name real pain refers to his Benjithe real “pain” of the film. “Actually, it’s written on the first page. “The camera zooms in on his face and, bam, he says:”real pain”. But I recognized the guy as soon as I read him and I just played him. “I wasn’t trying to hurt anyone or show that I was in any pain,” he says.

“When you play a character, you don’t see his bad qualities, you play him from your point of view. So their behavior always made a lot of sense to me. For example, when I contact a guide and give him unsolicited advice. Or when I can create a character Jesse it was uncomfortable. I mean, that’s the role, that’s what’s required, right? It wasn’t until I watched the whole movie and saw Benji“I thought, ‘Oh, it’s awkward when someone slaps this guy!’ – he concludes. Kalkin your reflection.

Work with your director

During promotion real pain Much has been said about the triple effort Jesse Eisenberg write, direct and act. But for the rest of the team, having him on both sides of the camera was also a problem. AND Kalkin He admits that coping with this was not always easy. “I knew that Jesse He was a great actor and I could also read that he was a great screenwriter because he had a script and I had already seen his first film. So I could see that he was good in this role too,” he begins, praising his co-star.

“What I didn’t know was how it would be with the actors. But the minute I met him and started working, I thought, “Yes, this is David And Benji‘. It’s a hard change though, to look at someone and act out a scene with them, and then immediately afterwards have them look you in the face and tell you that you could do better. And yes, there were moments when my instinct was to say, “Hey, leave me alone.” I have advice for you too, how dare you? But then you remember he’s a director and you say, “Oh yes sir, I’ll take note.” Plus, you remember that he also controls the editing, so you basically have to kiss his ass the whole time,” the co-star jokes. real pain.

real pain opens in theaters January 10.