If you judged Kristen Stewart solely by her performance in the "Twilight" films - surely most people know her for her role as Bella Swan in the blockbusters - you might expect her to be quiet, sullen, even morose.
That proved not to be the case, however, as she spoke recently about playing Joan Jett in "The Runaways," which opens Friday, March 19. Chatty, friendly and happy to talk about the film and her career, Stewart couldn't have seem further removed from her role as the love interest of vampires and werewolves.
Question: In "The Runaways" you play Joan Jett, which means you played and sang. Were you reluctant to do it?
Answer: Singing isn't something I'm comfortable doing anyway. I've always said that I would only do it if I was able to be someone else and sort of hide behind another person. If it's going to be Joan Jett, I mean, initially, if you don't know you can do that yet. . . . It was definitely intimidating, and important for me to get it right.
Q: Is this the first time you've played a living person?
A: Yeah. It's completely different. You're able to fill in the blanks as an actor and answer questions. . . . I think authenticity just makes everything so much more worthwhile. You don't make stuff up. I wasn't comfortable improvising. (Jett) was always trying to get me to. I was definitely in a position where I was comfortable with the character, but I could never make up the words. I was like, "I don't know what you would say. I can't just say what you would say."
Q: Is that satisfying?
A: Yeah, oh my gosh, especially since she's such an interesting person. It's almost more satisfying because you feel like whenever you play a character, they have to be complete to you. They have to feel real and whole. To emulate that is fun for you, but it's personal because it's in your head. But everyone knows Joan and how cool she is. If you get it right people will see it, because it's like, hello. It was cool. It's such a different experience, sitting next to the person you're playing. It's a trip. . . .
It's funny, on the surface she's like a complete bad-ass. You think she never walks into the room looking at the floor. But she's a lot different now than she was at that age. Even though she's got this dynamic personality - she's like fire, she's explosive sometimes and she's out there - she was really shy. It was weird playing a mix of that, because I have played sort of quiet characters before. She's sort of both.
Q: You've been in huge movies, like the "Twilight" films. You've also been in small, independent movies, like "The Cake Eaters." Is your approach different?
A: In terms of my approach as an actor and what I'm expected to do, it's never different. I choose everything the same way. I don't look at the budget and go, like, "I'm going to work this way on that movie because it's a bigger movie." It's kind of a different process, in terms of there are more people involved in a bigger movie. You have more time to do it. The food's better. (But) in terms of what I do, it's the same.
Q: You've been in some good smaller films, like "The Cake Eaters." Is it ever frustrating that that'll never be what you're known for?
A: I was in that position in such a bigger way when I hadn't done "Twilight." "Twilight" has helped my other movies reach people. I think "The Cake Eaters" and "The Yellow Handkerchief," I know that a lot of (the people who saw the films) are "Twilight" fans, and that really blows my mind. That's really cool to think about. It's cool to do both. If you do something that you love and you can share it with people, it's much better than having to fight to get it seen.
Q: When you're in movies as big as the "Twilight" films, you automatically become a tabloid magnet. Is that frustrating, to have people follow you with cameras when you're taking out the garbage?
A: I don't understand it. It's sort of pointless to try to, because it's not going to change. There are ways to protect yourself, it's cool. You shouldn't be taking out your garbage. You should have a gate. Yeah, it's annoying. I don't understand people who can do it for a living. You'd have to be such a sociopath. It's like, well, "We're getting paid." Oh, OK, you have really good priorities. You're going to die really happy.
Q: You seem like you don't really fight it, you just go with the flow.
A: I don't touch that little world, because then you're a part of it. As soon as your personal life becomes entertainment for other people you cheapen it, and it becomes fabrication. You start to believe in this little world that doesn't exist. So I don't answer anything about it. It doesn't matter. It's going to exist whether you like it or not, and I'm glad people are buying "The Cake Eaters" on DVD.
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