Ethan Hawke Felt That ‘You Have to Kill People’ if You Want to Be a Modern Day Movie Actor
Actor Ethan Hawke became a film star after having done films like Dead Poets Society and Training Day. But overtime, Hawke began to notice a pattern among contemporary film stars that he wanted to take a break from.
Ethan Hawke once explained what it took to be a movie star
Hawke’s filmography isn’t brimming with box-office hits like some of his contemporaries. Looking back on the actor’s work, even his successful films seem to focus less on spectacle and more on character work. This was designed by the actor earlier on in his career, who confided that he didn’t want to necessarily be a movie star. This was partially due to the Gattaca star‘s upbringing.
“I grew up in a household where there was such anger and resentment towards anyone who had any money, that I never really had any desire to make any money. And I had the idea that a real artist wouldn’t have any money. That’s been problematic,” he once told The Guardian.
Hawke instead decided to embark on a more fulfilling career. This meant that he went beyond starring in movies, and would occasionally do theater work to further flex his range. Doing theater was a welcome change of pace for the film star, who was growing tired of what it took to act in movies.
“To be a contemporary movie actor, you have to kill people – that’s basically it. If you don’t cock’n’load’n’fire a Smith & Wesson at some point in your film career, you’re not going to have a film career,” he said in a separate interview with The Guardian. “There just aren’t enough movies that I like to keep me working in movies all the time. Well, let me rephrase that: there aren’t enough available parts.”
Ethan Hawke feels like he’s only made a handful of good movies
Hawke boasts one of the most extensive and diverse filmographies in the entertainment industry. He’s been doing movies since 1985, where he’d made his onscreen debut on Explorers. Since then, he’s added several praised and unique projects to his name. Predestination, the Before trilogy, and Boyhood are just a few of the star’s most notable features.
Still, Hawke felt those kinds of projects were hard to come by. As far as he was concerned, the amount of subpar movies he’s done greatly outnumbered his crowning achievements.
“I’ve been doing this since I was thirteen and I feel I’ve made a handful of pretty good movies. It’s very difficult to make a good film, very difficult,” Hawke once told The Talks. “So many things need to happen right. It’s possible to make a good film in Hollywood; it’s harder to make a film that can last any amount of time. But it really all depends on what your inner goal is, you know? More and more I realize that if your goal is to be a big shot, you’ve got to make them in Hollywood.”
Hawke wanted to tell honest, captivating stories in his work. But he believed this might clash with Hollywood’s own ideas of what good movies are.
“If your goal is to tell the truth and try to make something beautiful, then you’re going to be less likely to do that in Hollywood. Some of the best times I’ve had in my life have been on a film set – working with Richard Linklater and Julie Delpy in Paris writing Before Sunset together. I could die,” he said.
Ethan Hawke felt that theater had what film normally lacked
Hawke has specific criteria for choosing his roles. In an interview with Film Comment, he shared that picking projects always came down to the writing. Which the Moon Knight star felt movies often lacked.
“My favorite thing is great writing, but more and more I come up against the fact that movies aren’t about writing. The theater is about writing and movies are about something else—some kind of attempt to capture moments in a bottle,” he said.
With that, it’s no wonder why Hawke’s theater work has been as extensive as his film credits. Hawke has been doing professional theater work since 1991 with the play Casanova. His last performance in a play was 2019’s True West.
