Back-to-Back: Kevin Spacey and Kate Bosworth

Mention the name Kevin Spacey and what comes to your mind? Of course, The Usual Suspects (for which he won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar) and American Beauty (for which he won a Best Actor Oscar).

His body of work is impressive, both in theater which has been his life since childhood and in film which, he said, doesn’t give him as much satisfaction and fulfillment as theater work does.

Trained at the Julliard School of Drama, Spacey made his New York debut in the Central Park production of Henry IV, Part 1 and his breakthrough came in the 1986 Broadway production of Eugene O’Neil’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night, starring Jack Lemmon with whom he had a long association.

After admiring Spacey in heavy roles such as those in L.A. Confidential, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and many other films, it’s refreshing to watch him light up the screen with his engrossing portrayal of Lex Luthor in Warner Bros.’ Superman Returns, nemesis of the Man of Steel, which was directed by Bryan Singer (X-Men, X2: X-Men United, etc.) who first directed Spacey in The Usual Suspects 10 years ago.

And then mention the name Kate Bosworth and chances are that you might confuse her with the other Kates. This Kate made her movie debut at age 14 in Robert Redford’s The Horse Whisperer, followed by Win a Date with Tad Hamilton, Wonderland (opposite Val Kilmer), the Denzel Washington starrer Remember The Titans and the Richard Gere starrer Bee Season where she made a cameo appearance.

In Superman Returns, playing Lois Lane to newcomer Brandon Routh’s Superman, Kate is reunited with Spacey who co-starred with and directed her in Beyond the Sea where he played the ’50s pop idol Bobby Darin and Kate, Darin’s late wife Sandra Dee.

According to the rumor mill, Kate is "sweet again" with Orlando Bloom but – sorry, folks! – she won’t talk about it.

Here are excerpts from separate Conversations with Spacey and Bosworth during the Superman Returns press junket three weeks ago in Los Angeles.

Kevin Spacey

How was it working with young talents like Brandon, Kate and Bryan?

"For me, it was really a fun experience, first of all having a chance to work with Bryan Singer again after 10 years from The Usual Suspects. No one in this franchise could have been put it in a more secure set of hands. Bryan and I worked in entirely different circumstances that we had the last time. And also, a lot of the people whom we worked with in Superman Returns were the same people Bryan and I worked with in The Usual Suspects, like the cinematographer, the composer and the costume designer. So it was like an old family working together again. Bryan and I had a wonderful experience making this movie and it was an extraordinary experience making The Usual Suspects. In a lot of ways, it was like not a day had gone by and it was so enlightening to see how much he has advanced as a filmmaker in the last 10 years."

What about Brandon?

"I like him a great deal. I think he’s a terrific choice; I think it was nice for the people behind the production to choose an unknown for the part. I think Brandon rose to the challenge; I think he made it his own and had a lot of fun kicking his...well, you know what it is."

You seemed to have a lot of fun playing Lex Luthor.

"Lex in this movie is much darker, bitter and out for revenge but still with a comic flair. He’s the ultimate capitalist. He’s got wide-ranging, hugely complicated evil plans. He has gone through so many changes and he feels that he has been so betrayed that he is now out for revenge. He has been away for a while and Superman has been away for a while, and Lex has remarkable things in mind when they come back together."

Are you a Superman man?

"Well, I didn’t grow up being a comic-book kid but I certainly am a Superman fan now. I don’t remember when I saw my first Superman movie but I do remember us racing down to the movie theater on a Friday night. Most of us actors wanted to see Marlon Brando (as Jor-El, a little part of whose appearance in the Christopher Reeve starrer was shown at the beginning of Superman Returns). I’ve seen reruns of other Superman movies on television but I’ve never been a Superman fanatic. Now I have a great admiration and affection for this genre."

How relevant is Superman in this age of terrorism?

"It’s obviously a different and more dangerous world and probably, to some degree, a cynical world. And maybe, people will embrace it because God knows that while there are people out to save this lovely planet of ours, there seems to be a great number of people who are doing their level best to destroy it."

What do you think is the symbolism, if any, of Superman in "dangerous" and "cynical" times like this?

"I don’t know. It’s difficult to make sort of a general comment about what people might think or what the symbolism is. It’s been a long time in-between the last Superman movie and this one and I think there is a great anticipation and excitement about it. I’m eager to find out how the people will respond."

Does Superman by any chance or by coincidence symbolize a superpower?

"Well, I certainly wish that we had more people in-charge of superpower who are a little bit more intelligent than they are."

Of course, doing Superman Returns is a big relief for you after your (mostly) theater work.

"I feel that I’ve been in theater all my life but I will continue to try to find ways to balance working in film and in theater."

Where are you more comfortable, in theater or in film?

"I’m happier in theater. For an actor, being in theater is an entirely different experience. I think it might be hard to understand exactly why but when you make a movie you don’t really play the whole part, unlike in theater when you have the chance to experience the character from A to Z every night and in the process you get to feel the depth of the play. I love the ritual of theater, I love performing every night; it has always been that way for me. I never saw theater as a stepping stone to movies. I enjoy making movies but they’re not an actor’s medium; they are a director’s medium."

Kate Bosworth

And how was it working with Brandon and other equally young talents like Bryan Singer?

"Young talents? Oh, Bryan would love you for that! You know, I loved working with Brandon; he is such a good person and a wonderful actor. I met him for the first time when I was auditioning for the role and he already got the part of Superman."

It’s such a fun movie and obviously everybody had fun. Which did you find the most fun part, the flying scenes?

"Yeah, I guess so. I suppose Bryan will tell you the same thing. The scenes where we fly look very romantic but they were actually very uncomfortable. But it was in those scenes that I became aware that I was in a Superman movie."

How old were you when you saw your first Superman movie?

"Oh, six or seven."

How did that movie impact your life? Did you as a kid imagine yourself as Lois Lane?

"Oh, I was way too young to think of that. But I guess everyone has very nostalgic memories of Superman – men, women, young kids and older people. My first memory of that film is, wow, it’s magic!"

How do you think your attack of the role is different from that of, say, Margot Kidder (Lois Lane to Christopher Reeve’s Superman)?

"I think Superman Returns is different from the one with Margot Kidder. For one thing, in this movie Lois Lane already has a child."

And which scenes were hard to do?

"The airplane sequence. It was very taxing. And the sequence in the end where we’re imprisoned by Lex Luthor. It was kind of suffocating. Oh yes, running on high heels. That was very difficult."

How did you prepare for the role which looks very physical?

"No, I didn’t really have to prepare for it. I refrained from watching other Superman movies so I wouldn’t have the pressure of mimicking how the other actresses played Lois Lane who, I think, is a feisty, intelligent and motivated reporter. What I did was watch a lot of Katharine Hepburn films. I saw characteristics of Katharine Hepburn in Lois Lane."

What aspects of the Lois Lane character did you identify with?

"Her passion, the fire in her. You know, if she sees something is unfair, she’s the first one to speak about it, against it. I’m like that. I guess my parents brought me up that way."

How do you think Superman Returns will change the course of your career?

"Hmmmm. I don’t know; I really don’t know. I try not to project in that way. Will it mark a turning point in my career? Maybe yes, maybe no. I really don’t know."

I wonder, how do you spend time away from work?

"Definitely, not partying. I’m not a partygoer. What I love to do is getting a group of friends together and having some food downed with glasses of Margarita and enjoying each other’s company."

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