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'Roles get better with age'
03/08/2006 13:08 - (SA)
Los Angeles - Who says it's no fun growing
old? Not Robin Williams.
The comedian and Oscar-winner stars in low-budget mystery
The Night Listener, which opens in the US on Friday.
In an interview with Reuters, Williams said his new role as
a gay radio show host at the centre of a possible hoax is
typical of parts he is offered at age 55 because the characters
are some of the most interesting roles of his 30-year career.
His claim runs counter to many a Hollywood star's
complaints that the juiciest roles go to young actors.
"They (the roles) may not be financially enriching, but
personally enriching? Yes. You are no longer under pressure.
You don't have to prove yourself on some levels, but you do
have to push yourself (creatively)," he added.
In Night Listener, Williams' character hosts a talk show, and he befriends a 14-year-old boy who claims to be the victim of child abuse. But the boy's story becomes suspect, and Williams' character begins to question if he is real.
Williams shot to stardom as the wacky alien Mork in 1970s
TV sitcom Mork & Mindy. He earned a reputation as a top actor in movies such as 1987's critically praised Good Morning Vietnam, and turned 1993's Mrs Doubtfire into a box office smash.
He also won a best supporting actor Oscar playing a
psychologist helping a young man tame his personal demons in
1997's Good Will Hunting.
While he still acts in mainstream comedies such as the
recent RV, fans now find him in many art house films like 2002's One Hour Photo where tales of personal and emotional conflict supersede Hollywood guffaws and special effects.
Stranger in the night
In Night Listener, Williams portrays Gabriel Noone, the
popular host of a late night programme in which he tells stories.
One night he gets a call from a 14 year-old boy with a shocking
tale of sexual abuse, and Noone strikes up a friendly phone
relationship with the teenager.
Noone never actually meets the boy, and his attempts to do
so yield only time with the adoptive mom (Toni Collette).
"It kind of taps into your own loneliness (and) the idea of
what is it to contact people, in any form, and what is the
nature of storytelling," Williams said.
The movie is based on San Francisco writer Armistead
Maupin's novel of the same name and stems from his real-life
experiences in the early 1990s with a fan whose existence has
never been proven. The screenplay is written by Maupin and his
former companion Terry Anderson.
Williams, a long-time resident of San Francisco, is friends
with Maupin and Anderson, and knowing them helped the actor
form the character of Gabriel Noone.
Williams said he has never fallen for a hoax, even though
he gets letters and requests from people who may not be
completely honest with him.
He said being a celebrity can be an isolating and lonely
life despite all the adulation from fawning fans.
To combat those feelings, Williams said, he gets out of the
house, on the street, and still performs in clubs.
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South Africa
