On the queasy charms of fast-talking narcissists and betting big on N Sync.
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And there is actually a term applied to these gentlemen within the adult-film world: Suitcase Pimps.
It doesnt represent all the men in the adult-film industry, but it is a certain bang out.
Some of these men are reprehensible.
Im very torn about how Im feeling right now and how I feel about myself.
So thats how he came about!
Simon, you have had one of the most unique careers.
They get mixed up all the time because of the red font.
You also had a music career under the name Dirt Nasty.
How did it sound to you?SR:Its crazy.
This normally doesnt happen this way at least, it hasnt happened for me this way.
It was a strange time.
I live out in the desert.
And I get a call from Seans sisters friend, whos my friend.
Well, do you know who Sean Baker is?
Im like, Yeah.
Well, hes possibly interested in you for a role.
Can I connect you guys?
I just did kind of a cold read on this phone right here.
Can you drive here?
So they rented me a car, I drove right there.
The whole thing happened so fast.
I didnt have much time to think.
SB:There are lots of Mikey Saber monologues in this film, rants.
And he came three days later with all of these memorized.
I was like, Who drove?
You guys remember Vine?
Rest in peace!SR:That was a fun app for a while.
Six seconds of pure … comedy?
SB:In those six seconds, you convinced me you could do a dramatic role.
I was like, Somebody should give him a dramatic role!
SR:Thank you, and I usually last about six seconds.
Oh no, not that.
And I have to say, some of my favorite lines in the film come from my incredible cast.
In the comedic stuff, I feel the more you rehearse, the more it gets flat.
We were shooting this on 16-mm.
Shooting during COVID, it was a smaller budget, very small crew.
They led us to happy accidents and things that we didnt have the time to throw money at.
Instead, we would just pivot and take advantage of whatever was in the moment.
And we came across Texas City and learned about the history of this city and the surrounding cities.
We were already dealing with the theme of history in this film: the history between individuals.
We just thought it would complement the actual personal story.
Mikey is in some ways a very dark character, but hes also this very likable character.
Hes really charismatic; hes funny and charming.
I know this key in of person.
But Ive said this before: I dont think its just in Hollywood or the adult-film industry.
I think everybody watching this movie knows this key in of person.
If they dont have them in their family, theyve certainly met them or had them as a friend.
And he got that, he understood that.
Im not making a comment about you!
SR:I have Peter Pan syndrome.
Theres physical comedy in this film, which I wasnt really expecting.
And he delivers on that.
SR:Thank you.
SR:Was it scripted or did I just do that?
SB:I asked you to do that.
SB:No, it was in the script.
I didnt read that thing.
This movie feels like a way of challenging our innate desire to root for comeback stories.
Was that part of the plan?SB:Yeah, most definitely.
I think we even have a visual metaphor; we have a roller-coaster scene in the film.
It was an intentional thing.
I think, though, theres also another aspect to that.
These days, you put an anti-hero up and youre going to say, What hes doing is bad!
And yes, but Im not condemning or condoning.
But some of my favorite films are about incredible anti-heroes.
When Im in the theater watching these characters, its engaging me.
Im so conflicted, Im learning from these characters.
I look back at Jack Nicholson inFive Easy Pieces, David Thewlis inNaked, Vincent Gallo inBuffalo 66.
Are these films being made these days?
No, not really.
And so I wanted to take a crack at them.
And especially when it comes to sex work, youre right.
Four of my seven films have aspects of sex work in them.
Its a reprehensible character.
But thats part of the large world of sex work.
Its important for me, if Im doing this, to tackle all aspects.
And they really helped me in many ways.
That means the most to me.
There are a lot of vulnerable and intimate scenes with both of these characters, both physically and emotionally.
Its really not gratuitous at all.
So it wasnt like some long, uncomfortable process to do that with my co-stars.
If anything, it kind of made us …
Therefore that made our chemistry on-camera maybe more believable throughout the rest of the movie.
SB:We had to shoot a lot of those scenes first, for whatever reason.
Films are scheduled, you never know why, just logistics.
SR:But I think that might have been a good thing in the end.
It helped us to have a little on-camera chemistry.
The movie is a love triangle.
Theres a movie calledHeartbreak Kid, same kind of story.
SB:Thats another great example of an anti-hero.
We havent seen that Charles Grodin character in quite a while.
And also another movie calledStar 80that Id like to compare this to.
Bob Fosse directed it.
We dont get a lot of cads like that, really.SR:Cad?
I think just like that, like the kind of guy whos SR:C-A-D?
What does that mean?
No, just that kind of character.SR:Is that short for something?
Is that an acronym?
No.SB:I usually think its cad, like a hip cat?
I just wanted to know.
Mikeys kind of like a cad on steroids, almost.SR:Hes a dog.
He is a dog.
Well,Red Rockettakes place against the backdrop of the 2016 election.
Im not trying to make any kind of statement.
Its up to the audience whether they want to liken Mikey Saber to a certain political figure.
But for me, that election really politicized everything, and yet it was a reality-television show.
Thats the way it was absorbed by the public.
And I just wanted to show that in the film.
Did you see anything Trump-y in Mikey?SR:Me?
Thank God we didnt have this conversation prior.
It would have planted something in my head.
Sure, you could make that comparison.
I think it could even be the other party.
But Im not educated on politics enough to know that, nor do I care to.
SB:Were very divided right now.
SR:And theres enough actors talking about politics!
We dont know what were talking about!
Remind me to never act like I know about politics, because I dont care.
It wasnt part of our initial budget.
She can sing, perform, and she teaches piano.
And so we thought,Lets display this wonderful talent in the movie.
SR:Yeah, didnt they have to approve it?
SB:They did.
Well, they approved the script, and then theres a certain scene they had to approve.
All members had to sign off on it!
So Justin has seen part of this movie!
Maybe hes a good guy, and I think those keep you onboard enough that you stay interested.
Because if hes just an unredeemable asshole for the whole movie, who cares?
SB:Can I speak to what you just said?
I hadnt seen Simon in a while, and suddenly theScary Movies come out.
Hes entertaining me again!
I think thats where Simon and Mikey meet.
That survival instinct and moving forward and that drive.
That was something that told me Simon is right for this role from the very beginning.
SR:Thank you.
You cant just wait for the phone to ring in this business.
Youve gotta adjust to the times.
Its kind of like NFTs and crypto.
And I was like, Yeah, he probably would be!
Simon, Ive heard you have some movie projects coming up now.
But also, what do you want to do next?
Where would you like to see this take you?SR:Thats a good question.
But I dont know what it looks like on the other side.
Im not really after money money always comes.
I just want to do good work.
This project is very special.
Im very aware that this is a unique one in how it happened.
I want to do more comedy.
I want to do obviously some more dramatic stuff as well.
