Jonah Hill stars as the babysitter from hell in his recent film "The Sitter," but this year has really been all about "Moneyball" for the almost-28-year-old actor. He received rave reviews for his role opposite Brad Pitt in the film, leading many to speculate whether his name will be tossed into next year's Oscar race.
The Los Angeles native is one smart cookie -- thoughtful, astute and smart -- but don't think he's trying to increase his star power for fun. "I have no intention of being a celebrity," he told The Huffington Post in a candid interview where he discussed his own babysitting experience, dramatic weight loss and his real thoughts on the Kardashians.
You play a babysitter in "The Sitter." Did you ever babysit when you were younger?
No, but I've been babysat.
Aren't you an uncle?
Yeah, I babysat [my brother's kids] recently. After I made the film, I was granted permission to babysit them.
You lost a lot of weight since filming "The Sitter." Is it weird watching that version of yourself now?
It's bizarre; it feels like a different chapter in my life, for sure.
I think you could write a diet book and it would be a bestseller.
Yeah, but I'm an actor. I think our culture has gotten so skewed. People assume that because you're an actor you want to write a book to exploit your celebrity, but my celebrity is only a byproduct of me making movies. I have no intention of being a celebrity. I just like to act and write and produce. To me, making movies is the ultimate goal. I don't need to then exploit my celebrity in some other way, except to make more movies. That's the problem; people are more caught up in being famous than making movies.
Do you get bothered by paparazzi?
Sometimes, if I'm in LA, they follow me around. I just smile and say hello. Look, at the same time that I don't want to be a celebrity, I understand that when you make movies you put yourself out in the public eye. I'd be a baby and a fool to be like, "Why are there cameras taking pictures of me?" when I'm on a billboard for a movie. I think that's a very absurd concept. An actor, by nature, wants attention. I'm not even complaining. If that's the worst part of my job then so be it. It's part of the gig.
This has been quite a year for you. There's Oscar talk for your role in "Moneyball."
Well, that's incredibly flattering and bizarre.
Will you be disappointed if you aren't nominated?
No! How can I expect to get a nomination for an Oscar? That's an insane expectation. The fact that people are mentioning it means I must have done a good job, which makes me happy. I'm really proud of "Moneyball." To me, it's about feeling pride in a movie I made. I think when I'm an old man I'll be able to show it to my grandkids with pride. That's all I can really go for: making movies to please me.
Are you getting offered different kinds of roles now?
Yeah, I get offered a lot more dramas now, which is really pleasant because my goal is to do both. I've definitely done my fair share of comedic movies, and I'm still early in my career. While I'm still young, I want to define my career as multiple things.
Whose career do you aspire to emulate?
My heroes are Bill Murray and Dustin Hoffman. Those are the two actors that both do comedies and dramas seamlessly. Also John C. Reilly and Philip Seymour Hoffman. They're all just great actors, neither comedic nor dramatic. They're just great actors.
When I interviewed you last time, a lot of the comments focused on your weight loss. I think there's an obsession with weight in this country.
They're obsessed with a lot of things. The Kardashians are as famous as our president. What does that tell you about how skewed our society is?
I read you were pretty crushed about Kim's divorce.
That's all a joke. ... The truth of it is, I have friends who work in TV and the Kardashians get higher ratings than their TV shows. Shows that people actually work hard on -- writing and creating and trying to tell stories. The fact that the Kardashians could be more popular than a show like "Mad Men" is disgusting. (Laughs) It's a super disgusting part of our culture, but I still find it funny to make a joke about it. Whenever I say I like reality TV, people write about it like they're in shock. I can't even understand it, so I watch it. I think it's funny and I definitely enjoy it in a making-fun-of-it sort of way, but where does the line sort of end? When do I stop making fun of it and become an actual fan?
Check out some other stars who've had something to say about the Kardashian clan.
