HOME TRAILERS 2013 SCHEDULE PODCASTS REVIEWS POSTERS INTERVIEWS SHORT FILMS NEWS FEEDS ABOUT APPS

INTERVIEWS

Toronto Interview: Tim Blake Nelson and Edward Norton

by Alex Billington
September 22, 2009

The last interview I did up in Toronto was with two of my own favorite actors - Tim Blake Nelson and Edward Norton. By now you've probably heard about their new film Leaves of Grass (read my review), that Nelson directed and Norton stars in as two brothers, one a stoner the other a professor. I caught up with the two of them the morning after the premiere of their film, so both were in high spirits. We talked about developing the story in Leaves of Grass, figuring out the distinctions between the two brothers, shooting Norton twice in scenes, balancing the humor and action, and maybe even a little about the Hulk.

This interview was so long that it was split into two parts. There is an equal amount of discussion in each video, so I suggest watching both, or at least start with the first one and then see if you want to continue.

Watch my interview with director Tim Blake Nelson and actor Edward Norton - Part 1:

Watch my interview with director Tim Blake Nelson and actor Edward Norton - Part 2:

This interview was shot using my Flip Mino camera, so apologies for the rough audio. Other interviews I did up in Toronto include Steven Soderbergh and Jennifer's Body director Karyn Kusama with Jason Reitman.

It was a true delight to talk with Tim and Edward - thank you to Cynthia for arranging this. I interviewed Norton last year about Pride and Glory, but it was much more exciting to talk to him about Leaves of Grass this time, especially because he plays two different brothers in dual roles, making it tricky at times to shoot. As you can tell, co-interviews (with two people) always turn out much better, as I mentioned when I ran the Kusama/Reitman interview. Hearing both Nelson and Norton talk about improv together, especially in that second video, was just great to listen to. Leaves of Grass is still looking for a US distributor, so stay tuned!

Filed under Interview, TIFF 09

From around the web:

OCP

What about a Hulk 2???
judasbarron

"Why are you always hitting people?" God, Incredible Hulk was awesome! Can't wait for the next one!
Tim

I love Edward. Hes one of my favorites.
Robbie

Interview is too long.
http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington

Too long?! Eesh, rarely ever hear that... You watched both parts?
Marie

Awesome! Thanks for sharing all of this!
rudeguy

You should consider transcribing it, it's extremely hard to hear them talking for me. Thanks for the all of the coverage!
Zach

Thanks for the spoiler warning! Pretty good interview though.
Jon

30 minutes is a long time for an interview like this, especially when the audio is so distracting. I couldn't bring myself to listen to more than 3 minutes before the noise in the background annoyed me so much I gave up.... which is disappointing to me because I love Ed Norton! As #7 mentioned, how bout a transcription?
Diana

Great Interview, thanks love Ed Norton! can't wait to see him in leaves of grass.
http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington

#7 & #9 - I'll see what I can do about transcribing it sometime in the near future... Apologies for the rough audio. Watch it with headphones, you'll be able to hear it better.
Jon

Thanks Alex. I might try to listen later with headphones if I get a chance.
Bliss

Many thanks for this interview! Btw, an interview with Edward Norton can never be too long and to all the people complaining about the sound, please give it a try with headphones.