Did you get yelled at?

I little bit.

That film promises to be controversial.

I think people will create controversy out of it and I think most of the people that do will probably not have seen the movie.  The movie itself is actually not about a controversial subject.  It’s about what it’s like to be a solider.  It’s not about any politics or governments.  I think everybody’s going to agree that the guys actually going over there having their lives threatened are simply brave guys that are going through a lot and that’s what the movie is about.

What was it like working with Mickey Rourke and what kind of Mickey were you working with?

He was a really great guy, a mentor and a selfless actor, a pro and he’s really good in this movie.  If you like Mickey Rourke, if you like Body Heat or Rumble Fish or Barfly or Sin City, then you’re going to really like this movie. It’s a character that fits in real life.

How big a fan are you of hockey?

I’ve become a fan.  I never really used to watch it.  It was funny.  There’s only a little scene in the movie with hockey in it and I got really into it.  I trained much more than anybody really asked me to and it wasn’t so much that I wanted to look good for those scenes although I did [laughter] but it was because, for whatever reason, it just got me in the mood and really became a key part of my preparation leading up to playing the character, how hard it is.  It’s probably the most physically demanding sport I’ve ever played. You’re sweating your balls off after you’re done with it. It hurt and you have to keep going and that reminds me of Chris for the same reason we’ve been talking about, that he never gives up.  I think maybe he gets some of that instinct from his athletic trials.

What do you think about his friends deserting him after the accident?  

It’s common.  If you lead a certain life and then, all of a sudden, wake up and you’re not that person anymore, I think it’s really difficult for the person going through it as well as the people around him.  It happens a lot.

You’re saying he also didn’t want to see his friends?

Yeah.  I think he would have trouble facing them.  He felt real guilty.  It was his fault and two of his friends died. I could see he’d have trouble being able to face up to the people you used to know.

Can you talk about the transition you made from when you were working as a kid and a teenager and the track that you’ve taken and choices you’ve made? It was a conscious decision, right?

Well, the conscious decision was that I wanted to be in good movies. That’s what I always wanted to do but the difference is that, when I was young I was kind of a selfish person.  When I was a teenager, I mostly just cared about my own pleasure and, as I grew up, moved out of my parents’ house and moved to New York, went to college and quit acting for a while, I started to feel a connection to the world around me in a way that I hadn’t as a teenager. When I started acting again, I wanted the acting to engage with that connection whereas, when I was younger, I was really unnerved when anybody would recognize me for something I’d done.  Now, I’m delighted if someone says to me, ‘hey, Mysterious Skin, that movie meant a lot to me’ or Brick or even ‘Third Rock From the Sun’ makes me laugh, I love that now whereas, when I was younger, I couldn’t handle it.  So it’s changed. The reason I do it has changed but I still also just do it because it’s fun and as far as different types of roles, as you say, I’m just trying to do stuff that I think is good and those are the jobs I could get that I thought were good.

Did you bring something to this that wasn’t on the page and, if so, was Scott okay with that?

I never really said anything that wasn’t on the page.

Did you take a scene in a different direction?

I don’t think so.  It was a really good script.

What about the scenes with Jeff Daniels, did you two ever ad-lib?

No. We didn’t ad lib anything, especially me and Jeff.  That’s where the least ad libs were because he comes from the theater and in theater there’s a real ethic of saying the script word for word and, sometimes, that’s appropriate on a movie set and sometimes, it’s not.  When the writing is as good as Scott’s is, then it’s appropriate.

What was it like working with Jeff?

He’s such a pro.  He’s my favorite kind of actor.  He’s someone who just loves and enjoys the creative process of working out a scene. He kind of reminded me of John Lithgow and I think they’ve worked together before.  They both come from the theater. They’re both actor’s actors. They’ve both been in a million plays and they both just know how to make a scene work. It’s a pleasure to collaborate with them.

What did you think of Scott as the director for this?

I think he did perfect.  I think he was born to make movies. You talk with the guy about movies, he’s seen so many movies.  He thinks in cinematic stories.  That’s how his mind works.  It’s a good thing that he’s started directing.  I think his movies are going to keep getting better and better.

You said you bonded with Matthew at the bar.  Was there any hanging out together when not shooting, like going to dinner or anything? Or, did you stay in your own little world?

There was a little of both.

When you first read the script were you glad that Chris made the decision he did?  Were you hoping he would?

Humm. Usually when I watch heists or who done it’s or crime stuff, or read it, it takes me until the second time that I watch it to really follow the story because, usually, it’s the characters that interest me which is why so many of the heists nowadays that are kind of more about plot twists and car chases, don’t interest me that much. I think they’re kind of boring whereas, The Lookout, the suspense comes from the people rather than the story.  That’s what I remember about reading the script first and that’s what I always remember every time I see the movie, just each character intrigues me and attracts me and I’m curious who they are and why they’re doing what they’re doing.

In Stop Loss you were with Ryan.  Are you comfortable thinking that a few years from now and you get more leads in movies you might end up as similar paparazzi bait? Are you trying to avoid that and stick to the indie roles? 

I don’t know.

But you did say that you hated the recognition factor when you were a teenager.

Yeah.  When I was a teenager I was kind of selfish, like I said.  I just liked doing the acting for the acting.  I would just as soon they burn the film afterward we’d shoot it because I just enjoyed doing the work but now I like it when people see the stuff I’ve done because I care about people other than myself.

Do you have a hard time watching yourself on screen?

Yeah.