Dominic West On Working With Julia Roberts: "No One Seemed To Enjoy It"

Dominic West, the underappreciated lead of the HBO show "The Wire", gave an interview to today's London's "Guardian" (the fifth season is about to debut in the UK) and talked about working with Hollywood actresses Renee Zellweger (he implies she doesn't eat) and Julia Roberts.

On his role opposite Julia Roberts in "Mona Lisa Smile":

"The movie didn't make much sense. We would be given new scenes to film out of the blue which, it transpired, had been written by Julia's agent, who was doubling as a producer," he says. "I don't know what anyone was doing there. No one seemed to enjoy it. Especially not Julia. She had just got married and just wanted to be off having sex with her husband. Trouble was, she had married the cameraman on the movie. You can't really relax in a sex scene when the husband is staring right at you."

On costarring in "Chicago" opposite Renée Zellweger:

"I learned a lot from working with her," he said. "She was so tough. I would hear the director say, 'Cut' and then wait for instructions; she would demand another 15 takes until she was absolutely happy with the scene. These leading ladies have it tough: they have to be girly enough to remain attractive but retain a steeliness to get their own way too. Plus, they seem to starve themselves all day to stay in shape."

Read the whole interview here. Below is a photo of Dominic with Renee Zellweger in Chicago, before her character Roxie Hart killed his Fred Casely.

Comments

[ntlc23]

I like Dominic West. He wasn't bashing either of them. He was just giving an interesting and straight-forward account of what it was like to work on the movies. The stuff about tense sex-scenes in front of the leading lady's director husband was funny. And the stuff about leading ladies having it tough was perhaps somewhat tongue in cheek, but I think he meant it too -- at least for the most part. I should look up some more interviews with him. And he was underappreciated in the Wire, but most everything about that amazing show was outside of the critics clach.

[Boadicea]

Gees, why the deliberately misleading Fox News headline? Enough with these!!

[NoOtherWay]

I don't enjoy looking at her.

There are so many talented actors in the world, why do only a handful show up in most movies. I think the best movies are ones where all of the actors are good, and unfamiliar.

[RobertAndropolis]

Generally speaking, Hollywood producers need to guarantee an audience to insure their future employment, and this means casting bankable stars that the public will flock to see--preferably more than once--who are, unfortunately, often long on charisma (sex appeal) and not so long on acting talent or range. That's why a one-note actor like Tom Cruise is the biggest movie star in the history of the cinema.

[wedgie]

Dominic West is a heck of a great actor. Puts on the American accent like a native. Plays amazing characters. A real leading man.

**

[penelope]

Why so many people have to talk about JR or RZ instead of the core of the interview???? D W is a great actor and gives a very good interview, what the word? honest?, and the wire was a magnificent show. too bad americans actors are so much into make money instead of art!

[AmericanIdle]

really? I think his accent is horrible, I pegged him for a Brit immediately. The Wire was a great show though.

[shedances]

I'm not thrilled with the HP headline, either (it gives the wrong impression); but I truly adored Renee Zellweger as Beatrix Potter alongside Ewan McGregor & she was excellent in the fictional Civil War film, "Cold Mountain," with Nicole Kidman & the handsome Jude Law. And, I've enjoyed Julia Roberts for eons now. She is a wonderful actress, and sounds like a very caring, involved mother as well (remember her in "Mystic Pizza"!). Her brother, Eric, was so good in "Coca Cola Kid" with the then-young and gorgeous Greta Scacchi. The latter is still one of my all-time favorite actresses!

Thanks,

K

[happycat]

Totally off subject, but Eric Roberts is one of my favorite actors. Where is he these days?

[patrickauburn]

He is in The Dark Knight actually as a mob boss...

[pizzmoe]

Who writes these HuffPo headlines?

[WomanInOrangeSweater]

karl Rove?

[TroubleNYC]

Misleading HP headline.

[tdavis01]

It is misleading. I look to the HP for news everyday but I have issues with their tendency for tabloid-like headlines. When you report like that the collective work looses credibility.

[puffhost]

Agreed.

[TheRetiredOne]

I know. That's happened many times before (less so within the last 3 or 4 months).

[outofhere]

respect yourself huffpost. stop w/ the misleading headlines.

[debkakes]

What a totally misleading headline! You make it sound as though no one enjoyed working with Roberts. Instead, what he is saying is, no one, INCLUDING Roberts, enjoyed working on the film.

[andvoodoo2]

Thanks. My thoughts exactly.

BTW, who is West and why should I care what he thinks?

[rayonfog]

If you watched The Wire, you'd care. Best show on TV, and I'm not exaggerating.

[Mij13]

It is totally misleading. Just the same, I have a feeling it's true.

[fetacheese]

ditto. read the article and re-read the headline. once again, huffpo makes something up that is not only misleading but an outright lie. really ridiculous.

[Eric8869]

Julia Roberts doesn't wear deoderant - that's enough for me. eeeeeeeeww

[hip dibler]

huffpo began debasing itself a long time ago. i decided to go with it.

[wedgie]

LOL---

Me too!

**

[SwingVoter]

So he is angry about the s e x scene distractions?

[AgentMacGyver]

This guy was perfectly cast in The Wire. He doesn't sugarcoat anything, does he? God bless him.

[marymansour]

Renee Zellweger seems to be a weird bird all the way around. Never could figure why she married Chesney and dumped him immediately.

[sunny555]

I totally agree, especially with the part about her being weird.

[AmericanIdle]

He's a good actor but does anyone else think his American accent sucks?