Lou Diamond Phillips is badass. He was Ritchie Valens in La Bamba, the badass student in Stand and Deliver and Jose Chavez Y fucking Chavez in Young Guns I & II. Now the dude, who is obviously not English, is swinging Excalibur as King Arthur in the stage version of Camelot. Also, he was the first actor that Racket has ever interviewed. See, we have some class. Just a little bit, though.
Racket Jonathan: How’s it going, man?
Lou Diamond Phillips: Oh, great, you know. There’s a lot of things to be grateful for.
RJ: So, you have all these actors, actors who have been in massively successful movies, Hugh Jackman, Daniel Raddcliffe, and now you are all doing theatre. Are you trying to lend theatre some of your “badass” cred?
LDP: No, not necessarily, Hugh Jackman was a theatre actor long before he ever became famous. I think he was doing an amazing job in Oklahoma! in the West End when he was discovered and became Wolverine. He won a Tony for The Boy From Oz, so he was very successful in theatre before the movies. And as far as I am concerned, I got a degree in Theatre from the University of Texas long before I was ever lucky enough to be put in movies and TV. People do have a certain perception, and then you do something outside the box, at least from their perspective, while for me, I love popping back into theatre from time to time.
RJ: I gotta ask, man, because, well, the British are known for being a pretty pasty people, so…did they put you in white face for the role of King Arthur?
LDP: You know what, I wear a wig in this, and I did ask them to go lighter on the wig, and am growing my beard out, which they make blonde. I am more concerned with just that “look” for Arthur, the way he carries Excalibur, I am definitely gong to be one of the more swarthy Arthurs that there has ever been, but hopefully one that the audiences will accept.
RJ: How badass is Excalibur?
LDP: Excalibur is amazing! It’s fricking heavy, it’s fun. He’s a warrior king, you know. I’m going to be playing it with a physicality, I don’t know if I get involved in a sword fight, but yea, I’m going to be bouncing around quite a bit.
RJ: Do you ever take it home, swing it around, chop your furniture in half and shit?
LDP: Not yet, man, not yet. We haven’t even started rehearsals yet, we’ll be starting that soon. It’s a big sword, man. Unfortunately, it’s not sharp. I don’t think they trust actors with sharp objects or things that could actually hurt them.
RJ: What do you look for when purchasing a new car?
LDP: I haven’t bought a new car in forever. I used to like the big trucks, I used to have a Ford Bronco, but these days I have kids, so I have to get something a little bit more friendly. But the next one I get is probably going to be a hybrid, only because I am trying to be a bit more green and ecologically minded. I’m not really a big car guy, it’s never been my thing. I drive a Lexus SUV, but like I said, I got three daughters and another on the way, so I have to have something I can put car seats in and everything.
RJ: Kids, huh. I know what you did.
LDP: Exactly.
RJ: I was trying to do some research, was unusual for us as a general rule, and found that you have been in a lot more shit than I realized, and the question comes down to: is there anything you’ve done that you are ashamed of?
LDP: Well, there’s a few of them that I haven’t watched. You don’t ever set out to make something bad. Fortunately for me, I’ve never been in a position where I’ve had to take something I didn’t think had the potential to be good, but they don’t always go the way you want them to go. Some of them, in the middle, you can tell they are not working out.
RJ: Do people know you more for Stand and Deliver, La Bamba or Young Guns?
LDP: Depends on where I am at in the country and the age range of who you are asking. La Bamba pretty much covered it, though. And that one comes up the most, but if I am in the South, guys are all about Young Guns or Courage Under Fire, but older people seem to remember Stand And Deliver the most.
RJ: So, you’ve met some really cool dudes as an actor…
LDP: Absolutely.
RJ: Is there anyone with whom you’ve developed a friendship with from “work”.
LDP: Unfortunately everyone’s really busy and you don’t get to spend as much time as you’d like, but Keifer (Sutherland) and I still go out and talk, and I just saw Emilio (Estevez) the other day.
RJ: Is there any work you turned down that you are kicking yourself in the ass for turning down?
LDP: Yea, the Matrix movies, I could have been in those, but like an idiot, I turned them down. It really wasn’t on the page, it was in the directors’ minds, and I couldn’t quite get it.
RJ: For what role?
LDP: It wasn’t Keanu’s role, it was a smaller role, but it would have been in all three.
RJ: Wow. Don’t worry, the third one sucked and the second was iffy at best,
LDP: I didn’t see the third one.
RJ: One of the few movies I paid for that I was bummed out that I paid for, so you’re not missing anything. What are some of your hobbies?
LDP: Well, I’ve been playing poker for a long time, I got to play in the world series this last year. Not the main event, because I was working, but one of the $1500 buy-ins. I like to play pool, I like to write. With kids, a lot of hobbies go by the wayside.
RJ: Do you carve pumpkins with your kids each year?
LDP: Absolutely, AND I make pumpkin seeds. I love to cook. I am all over those cooking shows.
RJ: Which ones? I am a big fan of Good Eats and Iron Chef (Both, but the Japanese one more)
LDP: I love the original, I dressed up as Chairman Kaga for Halloween last year with one of my daughters, but I am really digging Top Chef these days, too.
RJ: Yea, dude. That Japanese one’s too rad. Who is your favorite character from Friends?
LDP: Oh, that’s tough. Joey.
RJ: Good call. When you open your closet, what is the dominant color?
LDP: Wow, probably black.
RJ: What does that say about you?
LDP: Well, it’s left over from the artsy thing. I’m pretty monochromatic, not into a whole lot of color and a whole lot of flashy stuff, though I have gotten better at it. I’m actually wearing a blue shirt right now. I’m also a big jeans guy.
RJ: Speaking of blue shirts, who is your favorite superhero?
LDP: Good question, man, I don’t know. I never got into comics so much. I’m gunna say Homer Simpson, he’s a superhero, man.
RJ: Agreed. Is there any fellow celebrity that you want to be picked to have a sex scene with?
LDP: (explosive laughter.) Angelina Jolie is pretty fantastic, I can manage that. That would work. Jessica Biel is looking hot these days. Scarlett Johannson is pretty hot as well.
RJ: What kind of things do you support?
LDP: I’m definitely a democrat, left leaning bleeding heart liberal and it’s going to be very interesting to see which way this country goes next year. I also do a lot with education and literacy and I am also a spokesman for a program called Act Today. I try to get out and beat the bushes for them.
RJ: Alright, man, that’s about it for me.
LDP: Alright, Jonathan, I will catch you later.
-Jonathan Yost