Ethan Hawke said Tom Cruise’s dedication to doing his own stunts has changed what Hollywood now expects from actors.
The 55-year-old actor discussed his new historical action drama, The weightwhen he shifted his focus to Cruise’s influence and how it has put unspoken pressure on performers to avoid stunt doubles.
“Tom Cruise has completely changed what is expected of actors. Part of me gets angry over the years because everyone somehow feels like they are inferior when they use a stunt team,” Hawke said. Variety.
“What I liked about our movie is that there were no ridiculous stunts in it. It’s human. It’s not about things exploding, so most of the stunts were things we could do. They weren’t superhero things.”
Earlier this year, Ethan admitted that he’s also adapted to survive in Hollywood.
Despite early success in projects such as Reality Bites, Gattaca and Great Expectations, Hawke said he had to rethink his approach as opportunities changed with age.
“This job I’m in is a constant recontextualization, not for yourself, but for the people watching,” he said. The Hollywood Reporter.
“I came out of the gate getting lead roles, and that can cause laziness about the actual methodology of acting.”
He added: “I taught myself how to reboot the computer, from a lead actor to an actor, and thought, ‘What if I could combine these things?’ If you don’t do that as you get older, you will have far fewer opportunities. There are very few people who can be Paul Newman.”
Ethan also explained that he is “willing to play in the sandbox of commercialism.”
Taking advice from director Peter Weir, he says he tries to strike a balance between ambition and accessibility and sees popular films as a creative space.
