- Title: UNITED KINGDOM: Kevin Spacey launches his fly-on-the wall documentary in London
- Date: 9th June 2014
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (JUNE 09, 2014) (REUTERS) SPACEY BEING INTERVIEWED (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR AND EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, KEVIN SPACEY, SAYING: "For us to be able to peel the onion back a little bit and show people what it's like to put on a play and what actors go through, what it's like for an entire crew and to do that on really almost like a travelog of b
- Embargoed: 24th June 2014 13:00
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- Location: United Kingdom
- Country: United Kingdom
- Reuters ID: LVA5JRVP25EP4HM1X7JLY42LC2EF
- Story Text: American actor Kevin Spacey, who has resided for the past decade in London as artistic director of the Old Vic theatre, held a premiere there on Monday (June 9) for his latest film 'Now: In the Wings on a World Stage' - a movie which combines cinema with his love of theatre.
The documentary follows Spacey and the other actors and crew on The Bridge Project production of Shakespeare's Richard III, as it begins a ten month tour around the world.
Speaking at the launch at The Empire in Leicester Square, Spacey said "For us to be able to peel the onion back a little bit and show people what it's like to put on a play and what actors go through, what it's like for an entire crew and to do that on really almost like a travelog of being able to go as far as Beijing, or Doha, Singapore, Sydney, Australia as well as the United States, I just felt it was a great chance to have a little peek about what goes on."
The adaptation of the 400-year-old play was put on by Spacey's 'American Beauty' director, Sam Mendes.
"I think that's one of the things about Shakespeare in general is that he's survived all this time and his plays are very elastic - they can even survive really bad productions and they still somehow manage to be the thing that people talk about," Spacey said.
The film was produced and directed by Jeremy Whelehan, who worked as associate producer on the 2004 film "Beyond the Sea" which Spacey directed.
When asked how it was making a documentary about Spacey, when he also executive produced the movie, Whelehan replied "The nice thing was that myself and Kevin have had a long standing sort of working relationship over the past ten years or ten, twelve years so he had a lot of trust in what I'm doing and allowing me to be there in what is ultimately a very intimate working environment but when it came to the edit he was amazing. He really let me have creative freedom pretty much throughout. One or two notes came in - very salient, very helpful notes but really he allowed us to work and work and work and thankfully he seems very happy with the results."
Spacey hit the headlines recently when, during a performance of legal drama 'Clarence Darrow' at the Old Vic, the actor's courtroom speech was interrupted by a mobile phone. Instead of ignoring it, he was reported to let rip at the theatre-goer while still in character.
When asked whether he had a message to give to theatre-goers about use of mobile phones, he replied "Oh people know. I don't need to give that message. I mean, you're either rude or you're not."
The actor also reacted to the death of British comedian Rik Mayall, who was known internationally for the cult film 'Drop Dead Fred.'
"He was a genius," said Spacey, adding "Any time a beloved British artist, comedian in particular who made a lot of people laugh and probably made a lot of people want to become comedians. He'll be sorely missed."
Alongside the premiere, 'Now: In the Wings on a World Stage' was also screened in around 40 cinemas in the United Kingdom, with a live Q&A with Spacey being shown after the credits finished rolling.
The film will be available to download from the film's official site from June 10. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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