‘Hollywood’: David Corenswet Hopes Fans Get This Buddhist Message From the Netflix Series
The Netflix series Hollywood pulls gives viewers a glimpse at the way 1940s Tinsel Town could have been if the people in power made different choices. Aside from the hopeful alternate reality the show demonstrates, there’s one thing Corenswet wants every viewer takes away from the latest Ryan Murphy endeavor.
The role of Jack Costello made sense to David Corenswet
The Philadelphia native plays Jack Costello, a young and hungry actor who wants nothing more than to make it in Murphy’s revisionist take on Hollywood. As his first major production credit and largest role to date — he had a minor role in The Politician — Corenswet immersed himself into the part with ease, thanks to his upbringing.
Corenswet’s father was an actor. He was raised watching old films like Singin’ in the Rain. But Corenswet recognized — and respected — the relationship he has with film and how it differs from the relationship his father had with entertainment. “I have quite the same connection to films as he does,” Corenswet told MTV News. “But it’s hard to have the same connection to films that he does nowadays because it’s such a different experience.”
As someone who was raised without cable, Corenswet fell in love with the films he was allowed to watch over and over again. “We grew up watching the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers movies, Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn,” he said. To accurately capture the part, Corenswet considered how Jack’s world revolved around film simply because they’re his “only access to movie stars and fantastic stories.”
David Corenswet wanted to live in a fantasy world, so be pursued acting
Shockingly, Corenswet didn’t always dream of becoming an actor. He simply preferred living in the fictional worlds of Star Wars and James Bond. Aspiring to live in those worlds permanently, Corenswet started making choices that would put him “as close to [those worlds] as much of the time as [he] could be.”
When he was a freshman in college, Corenswet decided acting was his career path. “[I discovered] I love making movies, every aspect of it,” he explained. “I love the cinematography aspect. I love sound recording. I love the art director who’s in charge of everything, making sure everything runs on time. It all converged on this strange path of being an actor.”
David Corenswet hopes fans are receiving all of his good vibes
Hollywood depicts a revised world that drastically changed the way the entertainment industry functions. Corenswet’s only hope is that his performance makes viewers feel good. “There’s a Buddhist practice called metta,” Corenswet said. “It’s a loving-kindness practice. And you basically just imagine sending good vibes. You expand the feeling of compassion [you have inside] and wish well for the people that you love and for yourself. And even for the people who you don’t love so much.”
That’s what he hopes Hollywood does for audiences everywhere. He wants to fill people with joy so that they can deal with whatever experience they’re going through. “The point of that is that the world is the way it is, and there are problems that need to be fixed,” Corenswet believes. “But it is a useful and enjoyable thing to experience the feeling of wishing somebody well. [Even just] hoping that things go well for them, if you can’t solve their problems or fix their situation.”
No matter how or when you approach Hollywood, Corenswet hopes it fills you with “a belly full of compassion, hope, and a little bit more energy.”
