The Best Of Me Interview with James Marsden

James Marsden is a bit dreamy with those blue eyes (shh! don’t tell my husband I said that) and I had the privilege to sit down with him for an interview for his role in the movie The Best Of Me, based on the bestselling novel by acclaimed author Nicholas Sparks.



Here’s what he had to say….

Did you read the book and/or reference it for this role?

James Marsden: I did. The screenplay was obviously an abbreviated version of the book, not everything in the book can make the big screen and for our purposes within the cinematic version of the story you kind of have to stick to the script. Nicholas Sparks is so wonderful and has such a big following that you don’t want to stray too far from it and I don’t think we did…My guide was the screenplay.

There are some things in the book that didn’t make it to the movie but ultimately I believe Nicholas Sparks signed off on it and said it was OK.

How did you prepare for this role?

James Marsden: There wasn’t much preparation. I know Luke, who plays the younger me, and I got together to make sure that our voices were similar and that we weren’t doing any accents.

I did a little research on what my character does for a living. He works on an oil rig, so I wanted to see what that was like. There was some tethering and harnessing and swinging on a rope. It’s a very dangerous job, sometimes you’re out at sea for over 8 weeks at a time away from your family.

Beyond that, what I like about the script is that it speaks to the humanity of their situation and doesn’t really require much research. We’ve all had our first loves in our life. We’ve all felt those emotions very acutely when you’re young adults and we’ve all wondered what might have been if you had made a different decision in your life.

Are there any ways in which you relate to your character?

James Marsden: The older I get, the more measured I am about how much I speak. He’s a man whose actions speak louder than his words. He’s not an introvert necessarily but he’s very cautious about how much he says and how much he opens up to other people. He’s a warm-hearted person who doesn’t feel like he has to have the spot light on him…the older I get the more careful I am about what comes out of my mouth.

What was your most memorable moments well filming?

James Marsden: Some of the oil rig stuff was fun. We did a big explosion. There was a moment that I was swimming over the Mississippi River with 3 alligators that would living in the water.

It was an old oil rig that is now a museum…it’s right off the shore of the Mississippi River and the chef on set would go feed these alligators, which you’re not supposed to do. So they would congregate around where we were filming. I was literally swinging in a harness being held by stunt men over this and thinking I could fall…but it made for a good story to tell.

Who do you think should see the film and why?

James Marsden: Everyone wants the movies to hit all audiences but I think these movies trend more towards women but the guys that go see them with their girlfriends, their wives or dates, I think they respond to it too. I did The Notebook years ago and I remember at the premier and after there were men in the bathroom, splashing water on their faces because they were crying. We all think about what our lives would have been had we taken a right instead of a left.

It explores second chances, persistence, to love and all those things. I think unless you’re a total cynic you’ll love the movie.

What’s next for you?

James Marsden: I just did a pilot for HBO with Anthony Hopkins and Rachel Wood. It’s a remake of Michael Crichton’s West World from the 70s.

I did a film with Jack Black called the D train. It’s a two-handed comedy with me and Jack. It’s very subversive and very irreverent, a comedy you’ve never really seen before. Everything in the comedy world, you’ve seen…but this is a different take. It’s supposed to go to Sundance this year.

Any preference to the kind of projects you take on?

James Marsden: I like it all. I’ve been having fun doing more comedies lately. It’s always good to do good material comedy or a drama.

I try to follow the material I feel I can contribute to interesting way…that’s part of what’s great about being an actor, you don’t have to pick just one.

If you’re not acting what are you doing?

James Marsden: if I’m not acting, I’m with my kids.