Viggo interview transcript
I must be crazy - I've just spent two hours and a half transcribing Kristian Luuk's interview with Viggo Mortensen. Well, I hope *someone* among you all is interested. :-)
I've translated the early parts, which are in Swedish/Danish. Most of the interview is in English.
Kristian: Nu ska vi få träffa värsta dröm-mannen. Han är inte bara skådespelare, han är dessutom poet, musiker, konstnär... Han har bott över hela världen, pratar massor med språk, hans bästa kompis är hans son, han kan rida, och han äger Aragorns svärd. Flytta på er, här kommer Viggo Mortensen! /Now we're about the meet the ultimate dream man. He's not just an actor, he's also a poet, a musician, an artist... He has lived all over the world, speaks a lot of languages, his best friend is his son, he can ride, and he owns Aragorn's sword. Move aside, here comes Viggo Mortensen!
(Viggo enters and starts picking up cheese left on the floor by an earlier act.)
K: It's the cheese delivery! Välkommen! Varsågod och sitt! /Welcome! Sit down! It's Viggo with the cheese! (Viggo tries to give cheese to the gold fish.) This is too strong for him, give him the milder one. Viggo Mortensen!
(Viggo waves at the audience and blows a kiss.)
K: Välkommen! /Welcome!
Viggo: God kväll, Kristian. /Good evening, Kristian.
K: Välkommen till "Sen kväll med Luuk". /Welcome to "Late Night with Luuk".
V (waves at the fish): Hejsan Joakim. /Hi there, Joakim.
K: Joakim med foten. Okay, ja. /Joakim with the foot. Okay, yes.
V: Akta Joakim, det är ju fredag. Man får fisk på fredan. /Take care of Joakim, it's Friday. You get fish on Fridays.
K: Ja, just det. Du pratar ju bra danska, förstår du vad jag säger? /That's right. You speak good Danish, do you understand what I say?
V: Ja, fullständigt. /Yes, completely.
K: Fullständigt. Kan du berätta för mig vad du fick till frukost på danska så ser jag om jag förstår. /Completely. Can you tell me what you had for breakfast in Danish and I'll see if I understand.
V: Jag fick sparrepölse (?)... /I got "sparrepölse".
(Kristian looks as confused as I am. *g*)
V: ...och ost... /and cheese
K: Okay, ja.
V: ...och bröd... /and bread
K: Ja. Och "sparrepölse". /Yes. And "sparrepölse".
V: Ja.
K: Det är en slags korv gjord på sparvar, har jag förstått. /It's a kind of sausage made from sparrows, as I understand it.
V: Och en Carlsberg. /And a Carlsberg (beer).
K: Och en Carlsberg. Jaha, alla fördomar är bekräftade. /And a Carlsberg. I see, all my prejudice are confirmed. I think we should speak English anyway. Because my English is better than my Danish.
V: Okay.
K: How is your English, is it better than your Danish?
V: It's okay.
K: It's all right. But let's sort this out. Are you Swedish... are you Danish or are you American?
(Viggo laughs)
K: You were born in New York, right?
V: Born in New York, and my father's Danish and I'm a Danish citizen. I've lived there for a while.
K: Okay... A couple of years in your teens, or...
V: Yeah, and in my twenties also.
K: Mhm. Let's talk about this Lord of the Rings hulabaloo. I mean, it's crazy, isn't it? 17 Academy Awards total, for all the films. (Viggo claps his hands.) Eleven, and then three plus three.
V: Was it 17?
K: Tell us about your memories about that. You lived in New Zealand for many many years.
V: Yeah, on and off all the actors were there for, you know, a good four years, and, you know, Peter Jackson worked on it I think eight years. His children are about eight and six, so they don't know any other way of life.
K: Right. With this big man, hairy man, walking around in New Zealand for eight years. He turned a bit crazy from that, didn't he?
V: I think he already was. Have you seen his earlier movies?
K: No, I haven't, actually.
V: There's one called "Bad Taste", there's one called "Meet the Feebles"...
K: Okay.
V: There's some disturbing things in them.
K: These are all splatter movies, right?
V: Yeah.
K: Is it true that you lived with your sword by your side through all these years, you walked around with it even off the set?
V: Some of those stories got bigger and bigger. But I did, well, because I didn't have time to practice when I first got there, I asked permission if I could take it with me, so it was always in the car... not *necessarily* in the bed... Sometimes.
K: What did you do with it? Did you, you know, practice in the bathroom?
V: A gentleman doesn't really talk about that sort of thing.
K: I won't ask about it. Let's refresh our memory about the movie and see some clips with you in action. Ladies and gentlemen!
(Clips from LotR: Aragorn with Eowyn, with Arwen, tracking Orcs, the Path of the Dead, etc.)
K (clapping): You're a hero. (muffled) Or are you tired of seeing all these pictures? Are you tired of the trilogy?
V: No... I mean, when I look at it, I probably look at something different than you do. I look, I see Bernard Hill, or I see Miranda Otto, or I see, you know, the horse in the grass.
K: Mhm. And they only see you.
V (laughs): Well, I mean, you're looking at the story and remembering the friendships and the good and bad days.
K: Did Peter Jackson ever shower during these years?
V (startled grimace): I'm not sure.
K: You're not sure.
V (shakes head): I'm not sure.
K: I heard somewhere that you all got tattooed. All the nine of you.
V: Yeah.
K: We're gonna take a look at *your* tattoo when we come back.
(Viggo stands up and starts unzipping his pants.)
K: No no no, not right now, no no no! We're gonna take a short break. Reklam! /Commercials!
(Commercial break)
K: Välkommen tillbaka, jag är här med Viggo Mortensen, en av världens snyggaste karlar. /Welcome back, I'm here with Viggo Mortensen, one of the most handsome men in the world.
(Viggo holds up cheese and pretends to lick it.)
K: We talked about the tattoo, do you have a tattoo?
V: I do.
K: What is it, is it the number nine?
V: It's the word in Elvish for the number nine.
K: And where do you have it?
V: It's on one of my shoulders.
K (takes a look): Okay, we can't even see it. Or do you want to take your shirt off?
V: (pause) No. (Laughs.) Look at Joakim just spin around, he's like... (imitates the goldfish)
K: Yeah, he's been looking at you with that strange eye...
V: I think he lives an alternative lifestyle. There's something about his eyes that's very familiar. It's like a combination of Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis.
K: Yeah, we should have... Yeah, Elijah would have been a nice name for him.
V: Maybe when he travels.
K: Yeah.
V: When he stays in hotels...
K: Checking into hotels as Elijah. (Viggo chuckles.) He has his own life. Du är så mångsidig - you have so many... talents. We gotta talk about that. You're a painter. This is one of your paintings. Do you know what it's called?
V: It's... (turns the painting around)
K: Oh, it's that way?
(Viggo laughs, Kristian stands up and bows. Viggo claps his hands.)
K: I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry.
V: I'm just kidding. (Turns painting back, then around again.) No, it *is* like that.
K: Do you remember what it's called?
V: No.
K: No? Okay. You're also a photographer...
V: But this is done in New Zealand, there's a lot of things that I wrote, images of people and things...
K: Okay.
V: Some people call it painting, some people call it... something else. (laughs)
K (Brings out photo): Is this Elijah?
V: That is Elijah.
K: Okay, also photog...
V: You see the eyes?
K: Yeah, and the fish's eyes?
V: Very similar.
K: And this is one of your poems, you want to read it?
V: Okay.
K: "Ten last night" by Viggo Mortensen. Do you remember it?
V (looks at poem): It's kind of dark, isn't it? (pause) Yeah, okay. "I pass a pile of broken chairs on our street corner and feel you drying on me. I taste the blood that shimmered on your lips. Lingering, like guilt does."
K: Very nice. Very nice. "Ten last night".
V: It sounds like... It sounds like something Liv Ullmann would have said in "Autumn Sonata" or something.
K: Very beautiful. And! And! Not only this, and there's the actor as well. It's the actor, it's the photographer, it's the poet, it's the artist, and it's also the musician. (Brings out tape recorder.) Can I play a short piece?
(Viggo either says "oh shit" or "oh sure", I can't tell. Kristian starts the tape. It's a very strange tune.)
V: That's Elijah.
K: That's Elijah?
V: Yeah.
K: What is this piece called, do you know?
(Viggo claps his hands and makes the audience clap theirs too.)
K: This is crazy. How much... What were you smoking?
(Viggo laughs and claps.)
K: Is any of this bringing you money, except for the acting? Have you sold any...
V: Yeah, all of it, actually. And more now, obviously, because of Lord of the Rings doing well, and Hidalgo starting to do well... People are interested.
K: The photos are out in an exhibition in Denmark right now, aren't they?
V: No, it finished, it was down in Odense and then after that there was one in (muffled).
K: Okay. You're so good at everything. I mean, I'm so impressed. I have to take all this stuff down before we star talking about the horse movie.
V: Thanks for making the effort.
(They clear the table. Viggo swaps water glasses with Kristian when Kristian isn't looking.)
K: Oh, no no no (muffled). (He swaps back, and Viggo laughs.) And now you have this new movie out. Hidalgo. Which is the name of a horse. And you're sort of the horse's owner and his soul mate in a way. and you're competing in a desert race.
V: Yeah. Hidalgo is a mustang, which is a breed of wild horse that's found in North America. And, you know, Frank Hopkins, the cowboy I play, is a... was a real person and Hidalgo was a real horse, whose descendants live now in a herd in Oklahoma.
K: We'll take a look. This is when he hasn't read the weather forecast that good, because he's right in the middle of a sand storm. Look at this.
(Clip from Hidalgo.)
K: Hidalgo, opening March 26.
V: This horse that plays that part, plays Hidalgo, his name is T.J. and he's the smartest horse I've ever seen. I mean, I made great friends with the horses in New Zealand, but I also made friends and spent a lot of time with T.J. And he did something in the movie... You know, it's not a special effect as far as the animal reaction, he was either going to be interesting or not, as a horse.
K: Yeah. The sand storm we just saw here, was that the big... fans, or was it postproduction, how does that work?
V: When I ride into the building, like that, they had a whole bunch of cannons with, like, these big funnelse and they loaded them with tons of dirt and as we rode by they just shot them at us and completely... They almost blew us away.
K: Okay. Did you ever go, "Stop! I got something in my eye!"
V (laughs): We had some... I mean, there was a day when they had to do it artificially. It was a beautiful day, like here in Sweden, just blue skies and... you know, perfect, so that's a special effect a lot of that, and... you know, but we had so many days when we really didn't need it. That was *one* day we needed it, and we didn't have it. There were somany other days when we had sand storms.
K: That's one of the rules of making movies. I thought we could end this interview off, because this would really make me happy, if you could teach me, very shortly, just a quick lesson in fencing.
V: Okay, I'll just show you this... (imitates)
K: Thank you, let's go down here. You can have this. (Hands Viggo a plastic sword.) Do you want this? (Offers his plastic shield.)
V: No.
K: No you want this? (Offers him plastic horned helmet.)
V: No. You don't need this either. (Kristian gets rid of the shield as well, but keeps his dorky helmet on.) I'll show you how you... just the basic six positions to defend yourself.
K: Okay.
V: There. Here, right. And when you do it, you want to stop it with this part. (shows part of the sword)
K: Okay.
V (starts teaching): They are here, they are here, they are here, they are here, they are here, and they are here. Okay. Ready?
K: Yeah, I'm ready.
V: And I'll go slow. So, one. Down below. Two, three...
K (accidentally hitting Viggo's knuckles): Oh, I'm sorry.
V: No, like that, three four, five, six. (Finishes with a quick move.)
K: Oh, you're fast! Very good! Viggo Mortensen, everybody! Thank you so much! You're good at fencing. I didn't know you would be (muffled). (Puts his arm around Viggo's shoulder.) Viggo!
I've translated the early parts, which are in Swedish/Danish. Most of the interview is in English.
Kristian: Nu ska vi få träffa värsta dröm-mannen. Han är inte bara skådespelare, han är dessutom poet, musiker, konstnär... Han har bott över hela världen, pratar massor med språk, hans bästa kompis är hans son, han kan rida, och han äger Aragorns svärd. Flytta på er, här kommer Viggo Mortensen! /Now we're about the meet the ultimate dream man. He's not just an actor, he's also a poet, a musician, an artist... He has lived all over the world, speaks a lot of languages, his best friend is his son, he can ride, and he owns Aragorn's sword. Move aside, here comes Viggo Mortensen!
(Viggo enters and starts picking up cheese left on the floor by an earlier act.)
K: It's the cheese delivery! Välkommen! Varsågod och sitt! /Welcome! Sit down! It's Viggo with the cheese! (Viggo tries to give cheese to the gold fish.) This is too strong for him, give him the milder one. Viggo Mortensen!
(Viggo waves at the audience and blows a kiss.)
K: Välkommen! /Welcome!
Viggo: God kväll, Kristian. /Good evening, Kristian.
K: Välkommen till "Sen kväll med Luuk". /Welcome to "Late Night with Luuk".
V (waves at the fish): Hejsan Joakim. /Hi there, Joakim.
K: Joakim med foten. Okay, ja. /Joakim with the foot. Okay, yes.
V: Akta Joakim, det är ju fredag. Man får fisk på fredan. /Take care of Joakim, it's Friday. You get fish on Fridays.
K: Ja, just det. Du pratar ju bra danska, förstår du vad jag säger? /That's right. You speak good Danish, do you understand what I say?
V: Ja, fullständigt. /Yes, completely.
K: Fullständigt. Kan du berätta för mig vad du fick till frukost på danska så ser jag om jag förstår. /Completely. Can you tell me what you had for breakfast in Danish and I'll see if I understand.
V: Jag fick sparrepölse (?)... /I got "sparrepölse".
(Kristian looks as confused as I am. *g*)
V: ...och ost... /and cheese
K: Okay, ja.
V: ...och bröd... /and bread
K: Ja. Och "sparrepölse". /Yes. And "sparrepölse".
V: Ja.
K: Det är en slags korv gjord på sparvar, har jag förstått. /It's a kind of sausage made from sparrows, as I understand it.
V: Och en Carlsberg. /And a Carlsberg (beer).
K: Och en Carlsberg. Jaha, alla fördomar är bekräftade. /And a Carlsberg. I see, all my prejudice are confirmed. I think we should speak English anyway. Because my English is better than my Danish.
V: Okay.
K: How is your English, is it better than your Danish?
V: It's okay.
K: It's all right. But let's sort this out. Are you Swedish... are you Danish or are you American?
(Viggo laughs)
K: You were born in New York, right?
V: Born in New York, and my father's Danish and I'm a Danish citizen. I've lived there for a while.
K: Okay... A couple of years in your teens, or...
V: Yeah, and in my twenties also.
K: Mhm. Let's talk about this Lord of the Rings hulabaloo. I mean, it's crazy, isn't it? 17 Academy Awards total, for all the films. (Viggo claps his hands.) Eleven, and then three plus three.
V: Was it 17?
K: Tell us about your memories about that. You lived in New Zealand for many many years.
V: Yeah, on and off all the actors were there for, you know, a good four years, and, you know, Peter Jackson worked on it I think eight years. His children are about eight and six, so they don't know any other way of life.
K: Right. With this big man, hairy man, walking around in New Zealand for eight years. He turned a bit crazy from that, didn't he?
V: I think he already was. Have you seen his earlier movies?
K: No, I haven't, actually.
V: There's one called "Bad Taste", there's one called "Meet the Feebles"...
K: Okay.
V: There's some disturbing things in them.
K: These are all splatter movies, right?
V: Yeah.
K: Is it true that you lived with your sword by your side through all these years, you walked around with it even off the set?
V: Some of those stories got bigger and bigger. But I did, well, because I didn't have time to practice when I first got there, I asked permission if I could take it with me, so it was always in the car... not *necessarily* in the bed... Sometimes.
K: What did you do with it? Did you, you know, practice in the bathroom?
V: A gentleman doesn't really talk about that sort of thing.
K: I won't ask about it. Let's refresh our memory about the movie and see some clips with you in action. Ladies and gentlemen!
(Clips from LotR: Aragorn with Eowyn, with Arwen, tracking Orcs, the Path of the Dead, etc.)
K (clapping): You're a hero. (muffled) Or are you tired of seeing all these pictures? Are you tired of the trilogy?
V: No... I mean, when I look at it, I probably look at something different than you do. I look, I see Bernard Hill, or I see Miranda Otto, or I see, you know, the horse in the grass.
K: Mhm. And they only see you.
V (laughs): Well, I mean, you're looking at the story and remembering the friendships and the good and bad days.
K: Did Peter Jackson ever shower during these years?
V (startled grimace): I'm not sure.
K: You're not sure.
V (shakes head): I'm not sure.
K: I heard somewhere that you all got tattooed. All the nine of you.
V: Yeah.
K: We're gonna take a look at *your* tattoo when we come back.
(Viggo stands up and starts unzipping his pants.)
K: No no no, not right now, no no no! We're gonna take a short break. Reklam! /Commercials!
(Commercial break)
K: Välkommen tillbaka, jag är här med Viggo Mortensen, en av världens snyggaste karlar. /Welcome back, I'm here with Viggo Mortensen, one of the most handsome men in the world.
(Viggo holds up cheese and pretends to lick it.)
K: We talked about the tattoo, do you have a tattoo?
V: I do.
K: What is it, is it the number nine?
V: It's the word in Elvish for the number nine.
K: And where do you have it?
V: It's on one of my shoulders.
K (takes a look): Okay, we can't even see it. Or do you want to take your shirt off?
V: (pause) No. (Laughs.) Look at Joakim just spin around, he's like... (imitates the goldfish)
K: Yeah, he's been looking at you with that strange eye...
V: I think he lives an alternative lifestyle. There's something about his eyes that's very familiar. It's like a combination of Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis.
K: Yeah, we should have... Yeah, Elijah would have been a nice name for him.
V: Maybe when he travels.
K: Yeah.
V: When he stays in hotels...
K: Checking into hotels as Elijah. (Viggo chuckles.) He has his own life. Du är så mångsidig - you have so many... talents. We gotta talk about that. You're a painter. This is one of your paintings. Do you know what it's called?
V: It's... (turns the painting around)
K: Oh, it's that way?
(Viggo laughs, Kristian stands up and bows. Viggo claps his hands.)
K: I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry.
V: I'm just kidding. (Turns painting back, then around again.) No, it *is* like that.
K: Do you remember what it's called?
V: No.
K: No? Okay. You're also a photographer...
V: But this is done in New Zealand, there's a lot of things that I wrote, images of people and things...
K: Okay.
V: Some people call it painting, some people call it... something else. (laughs)
K (Brings out photo): Is this Elijah?
V: That is Elijah.
K: Okay, also photog...
V: You see the eyes?
K: Yeah, and the fish's eyes?
V: Very similar.
K: And this is one of your poems, you want to read it?
V: Okay.
K: "Ten last night" by Viggo Mortensen. Do you remember it?
V (looks at poem): It's kind of dark, isn't it? (pause) Yeah, okay. "I pass a pile of broken chairs on our street corner and feel you drying on me. I taste the blood that shimmered on your lips. Lingering, like guilt does."
K: Very nice. Very nice. "Ten last night".
V: It sounds like... It sounds like something Liv Ullmann would have said in "Autumn Sonata" or something.
K: Very beautiful. And! And! Not only this, and there's the actor as well. It's the actor, it's the photographer, it's the poet, it's the artist, and it's also the musician. (Brings out tape recorder.) Can I play a short piece?
(Viggo either says "oh shit" or "oh sure", I can't tell. Kristian starts the tape. It's a very strange tune.)
V: That's Elijah.
K: That's Elijah?
V: Yeah.
K: What is this piece called, do you know?
(Viggo claps his hands and makes the audience clap theirs too.)
K: This is crazy. How much... What were you smoking?
(Viggo laughs and claps.)
K: Is any of this bringing you money, except for the acting? Have you sold any...
V: Yeah, all of it, actually. And more now, obviously, because of Lord of the Rings doing well, and Hidalgo starting to do well... People are interested.
K: The photos are out in an exhibition in Denmark right now, aren't they?
V: No, it finished, it was down in Odense and then after that there was one in (muffled).
K: Okay. You're so good at everything. I mean, I'm so impressed. I have to take all this stuff down before we star talking about the horse movie.
V: Thanks for making the effort.
(They clear the table. Viggo swaps water glasses with Kristian when Kristian isn't looking.)
K: Oh, no no no (muffled). (He swaps back, and Viggo laughs.) And now you have this new movie out. Hidalgo. Which is the name of a horse. And you're sort of the horse's owner and his soul mate in a way. and you're competing in a desert race.
V: Yeah. Hidalgo is a mustang, which is a breed of wild horse that's found in North America. And, you know, Frank Hopkins, the cowboy I play, is a... was a real person and Hidalgo was a real horse, whose descendants live now in a herd in Oklahoma.
K: We'll take a look. This is when he hasn't read the weather forecast that good, because he's right in the middle of a sand storm. Look at this.
(Clip from Hidalgo.)
K: Hidalgo, opening March 26.
V: This horse that plays that part, plays Hidalgo, his name is T.J. and he's the smartest horse I've ever seen. I mean, I made great friends with the horses in New Zealand, but I also made friends and spent a lot of time with T.J. And he did something in the movie... You know, it's not a special effect as far as the animal reaction, he was either going to be interesting or not, as a horse.
K: Yeah. The sand storm we just saw here, was that the big... fans, or was it postproduction, how does that work?
V: When I ride into the building, like that, they had a whole bunch of cannons with, like, these big funnelse and they loaded them with tons of dirt and as we rode by they just shot them at us and completely... They almost blew us away.
K: Okay. Did you ever go, "Stop! I got something in my eye!"
V (laughs): We had some... I mean, there was a day when they had to do it artificially. It was a beautiful day, like here in Sweden, just blue skies and... you know, perfect, so that's a special effect a lot of that, and... you know, but we had so many days when we really didn't need it. That was *one* day we needed it, and we didn't have it. There were somany other days when we had sand storms.
K: That's one of the rules of making movies. I thought we could end this interview off, because this would really make me happy, if you could teach me, very shortly, just a quick lesson in fencing.
V: Okay, I'll just show you this... (imitates)
K: Thank you, let's go down here. You can have this. (Hands Viggo a plastic sword.) Do you want this? (Offers his plastic shield.)
V: No.
K: No you want this? (Offers him plastic horned helmet.)
V: No. You don't need this either. (Kristian gets rid of the shield as well, but keeps his dorky helmet on.) I'll show you how you... just the basic six positions to defend yourself.
K: Okay.
V: There. Here, right. And when you do it, you want to stop it with this part. (shows part of the sword)
K: Okay.
V (starts teaching): They are here, they are here, they are here, they are here, they are here, and they are here. Okay. Ready?
K: Yeah, I'm ready.
V: And I'll go slow. So, one. Down below. Two, three...
K (accidentally hitting Viggo's knuckles): Oh, I'm sorry.
V: No, like that, three four, five, six. (Finishes with a quick move.)
K: Oh, you're fast! Very good! Viggo Mortensen, everybody! Thank you so much! You're good at fencing. I didn't know you would be (muffled). (Puts his arm around Viggo's shoulder.) Viggo!