THIS CHARMING MAN
He’s swapped the American Office for Hollywood, been touched by the hand of George Clooney and scrawled his name all over a house in Kerry. Tara Brady meets awesomely nice Away We Go star John Burke Krasinski.
Tara Brady, 23 Sep 2009
When George Clooney cast John Burke Krasinski in the period football rom-com Leatherheads, many commentators chose to interpret the decision in quasi-biblical terms. This wasn’t just casting, they argued, this was Clooney anointing his spiritual heir.
It’s not such a far-fetched notion. There are plenty of similarities between the two men. Both became household names on the small screen - Clooney in ER, Mr. Krasinski in The Office – before they bucked the historical odds and seamlessly transitioned into movies. Both men have, despite plenty of cutesy mainstream offers, taken the road less travelled, preferring smaller, smarter projects to lucrative Hollywood gigs.
But if Mr. Clooney was, indeed, anointing John Krasinski as his spiritual heir, we’re fairly certain it’s because the latter is so damned cool. Everything about the 29-year-old screams ‘awesome’. His fiancée is the equally hip Emily Blunt. He talks a great game about J.D. Salinger. He pops up in Greg Araki movies and American Dad. Balckberry and Apple are happy to share him as a spokesman. He studied at Brown, the most liberal, swinging outfit in the Ivy League.
“It’s a good school alright, expensive too,” he laughs. “They just encourage you to keep trying different classes and different things. See, already I don’t sound awesome or cool.”
Different things included a reading of David Foster Wallace’s short story collection Brief Interviews With Hideous Men, an experience that would inspire Mr. Krasinski’s subsequent acting career and his directorial debut. His film adaptation of the book premiered at Sundance earlier this year to positive notices.
“We shot it about three years ago,” he says. “But then I got the call from George Clooney and then I got a call from Sam Mendes and then there was The Office so I just never got a chance to make it to the editing room. Oddly, it was the best thing that could have happened. I was able to get Sam to take a look at it. I was able to watch it with fresh eyes. So now it’s the movie I wanted to make. It’s only a fraction – a small fraction of David Foster Wallace’s brilliance. But I’m happy with that. I really believe he’s the greatest writer ever.”
Page 1/3 <Previous 1 2 3 Next>
©Hot Press 2011. Why be a member? | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy