James Dean, Life And Leaving Photography Behind - Exclusive Interview With Anton Corbijn
On Dane DeHaan As James Dean
WC: One thing I'd really like to talk about it your casting of Dane DeHaan as James Dean. I thought he was brilliant, but not quite a conventional choice for the role. What drew you to him to embody this iconic figure? AC: I think that Dane is one of these actors that becomes character. He goes really deep into it and he preapres really well. I felt that the physical resemblance only goes so far, so you need an actor who can, through his acting, make it go further and make you believe that he is a person. I liked what Dane did and he does different things. He just not just one type of actor one kind of roles. I heard that James Dean was a very big inspiration for him, apparently his big hero, so he was reluctant to meet with me because he didn't want to do it at all. But we managed to meet in the end through the intervention of a mutual friend, and I'm really happy that he did it. WC: Ah, I didn't realise how big a deal it will have been for him. Was there any particular role of his before that made you, when you watched it, "Oh this is going to be James Dean"? Were the elements that you wanted in a performance of James Dean present in an earlier role of his. AC: No it's more cumulative I guess. And then meeting him made me want him even more. He has a very striking face, you know. It's not exactly the James Dean look, but you want to look at his face. He's very interesting, unusual, you know? WC: His performance was very striking because he didn't just capture the role, but he had this angst that almost seemed to infect the film. The character looked like he was trying to get out of frame and forcing the camera to follow him; the movie almost shaped around him. How did you develop that? AC: Well, Dane came very well prepared and felt the person already. But I also felt that a lot of artists who are very well known there's a duality to their fame - they like it and they don't like it - and so there's that struggle inside, like you know how far you let go of yourself to further your career. I thought that's the struggle I wanted to have with James Dean's portrayal because obviously he does like fame and he struggles with it at the same time. And I thought Dane did it really well.
