By: debbie lynn elias
It’s a guaranteed good time and mutual admiration society reunion whenever Wes Bentley and I get together. Putting a great deal of trust in me when it comes to his level of candor, we have braved the darkness and the light, talked about demons on screen, personal dragons he has slain and, of course, his ever present career which took a real upward turn with his performance as Seneca in The Hunger Games. Over the past few years, with every meeting and conversation, the sun shines ever brighter for Wes Bentley, but never moreso than now. As we sat down for this exclusive interview initially to talk about The Time Being, thanks to Fate and a slow, steady burn of glorious opportunities, a cornucopia of riches has opened up for Wes, among them, Lovelace, Terrence Malick’s upcoming Knight of Cups, Green Blade Rises about Abe Lincoln’s formative years, and a real surprise, HBO’s newly announced Ryan Murphy created series, Open.
In The Time Being, Bentley stars opposite Frank Langella. Written and directed by first-time feature helmer Nenad Cicin-Sain, The Time Being is a moody and meditative performance piece set against stunning visuals that set the stage for the relationship between Daniel, a struggling young artist, and Warner, a reclusive elder benefactor whom Daniel hopes will give him a commission. Instead of the much needed commission to support Daniel’s financially-strapped and emotionally crumbling family, Warner instead offers him curious and specific photo-video assignments that seem more like surveillance than art. At first blush, although strange, Daniel accepts the first assignment as his art is a meld of photography and oil work with the photo serving as inspiration for the canvas. But the assignments become more bizarre, raising suspicion within Daniel. As Daniel and Warner start to build on their business relationship, truths come to light through underlying themes of family, art, sacrifice, selfishness and selflessness, as we come to learn that Warner is neither who or what he seems and that he and Daniel may have more in common than Daniel would like to believe. Almost a cautionary tale from one generation to the next, will Daniel recognize the mistakes of Warner’s life that he is also now seemingly duplicating or will Daniel ignore life’s lessons and a chance for finding his true self before it’s too late?
Sitting on the 8th floor of a Hollywood hi-rise, the day of our interview delivered a sunny, clear, gorgeous panoramic view of the city below us which, in and of itself, seemed like the cherry on top of Bentley’s life right now, and a picture-perfect setting to talk about movies, imagery and Bentley’s burgeoning career.
First, I’ve got to congratulate you on the HBO show, Open! Whenever time has passed since we last get together, I sometimes sit and wonder and go, “ Wonder what Wes has being doing since The Hunger Games?” and the next thing I know, you’ve got the Terrence Malick project Knight of Cups, Lovelace and this movie, The Time Being, which is so beautiful.
Thank you, thank you very much. I’m excited about [Open]. Did you like this movie?
Oh my god! I love it. You’ve got minimal dialogue, but your performance! You’ve got this great thoughtful intensity that’s as if Frank Langella is transferring the spirit of his character Warner into you. It’s really wonderful to watch.
Oh yeah. That’s great. I’m so glad that YOU like it.
What led you to this film? Especially since this is another first-time director. You’ve got another film coming up, The Three Nights in the Desert which also bodes a first-time director. What is this magical meld you’ve got going on with first-time helmers?
Sometimes it’s circumstance, sometimes it’s a good script, sometimes it’s that people who have credit believe in them. It doesn’t always have to be a director who’s got the experience; it’s the people around him who believe in him. It helps you have faith in him as well.
What spoke to you about The Time Being? This is off the beaten path and not something one would expect to see you jump into you.
A couple things. Because I’m a father and I’m an actor, I understand the battles between being the dad and being an artist and [the question of] “Where do you spend your time?”. I had a much shorter and much less intense battle than Daniel did. I decided right away the focus I want it to be is to be a dad and if my art struggles, so be it. I’d rather be a good dad. But what I found in doing that is that I was taking so much from my son as an artist, too, and I was able to use that [in my acting]. It was actually giving me more tools than I had before. I needed him, I needed her, to give me more as an artist. Were I in my 20’s, I would have never thought that before I even wanted to have a kid. I would have thought that was the last thing I needed [laughing], which is kind of the struggle that they are having in The Time Being. It’s one of the themes. I thought that was interesting. And it made me a bit emotional. The line where Daniel says, “I need my family”, hit home. So I was interested in that.
Also, I met with Nenad [Cicin-Sain] and he wanted to make a very artistic film. He wanted everything to look like a painting. I thought that was cool. I thought that would be interesting to see and he definitely did that.
It does look like a perfectly framed and posed painting. You could lift almost any frame out of this film and have it as a stand alone image.
Which is very cool. I had a battle about where my shoes should go in one scene. I thought I would fall asleep in the chair with my shoes on. I’ve done that. It seems normal. Why would you take your shoes off if you’re just sleeping in a chair? But, he was very adamant. He wanted the shoes sitting on the ground, [indicating] over here. I argued but was like, “Okay, whatever you want.” Then I saw it later and I got it. It looked like a painting. He was just trying to place his piece in the painting. I apologized to him for questioning him. It wasn’t really a fight. It was just a questioning. But he was so adamant, it felt like, “Oh, okay, he really wants this.” Then I saw it and it was “I know what your doing.” He did that so much in the film. So, I liked that idea [the visual artistry] and I was intrigued by it. I wanted to be a part of that.
Since Daniel is an artist who blends photography and oil painting, did you have to speak with anyone or undergo some training in brush stroke technique, camera operation? You’re working in two mediums – oil and still photography. Your physical operation and movement in each discipline is very believable, especially with the painting be it with brush strokes or holding the brush, dipping the brush swirling it in water or turpentine.
Oh, that’s nice. That’s great. The two painters who helped us on the film [Eric Zener and Stephen Wright], I worked with them for a couple of days. I’m not a painter and I never have been, but they showed me the basics.
You’re acting is actually like a painting. You paint your own canvases with your performance!
That’s right [laughing] that’s right. But don’t give me a brush! It won’t look like that! [laughing] But they showed me how to do that and being an actor I was able to take it on. They showed me how to build a painting from the back so when we made the paintings it was a back and forth. I would do a bit on the camera and then one of them would come in and start working a bit on it while we shot something else. Then I would come in and do more and then he would show me something else to do. I’m quick to pick up on it so I was lucky to have these two guys show me how to look like a real painter.
Very convincingly, Wes. It’s amazing to watch. The more you got into the film and then when you’re working on the big piece and you’re actually sketching out with the charcoal. Everyone can see – it’s actually you filling in the paint and some of the subject details which so often you don’t get in a film.
It was me. You’re right. We were lucky. They did great stuff for the film in editing but like I said, Eric Zener, [with] that painting he was very detailed with me. I’m a very reactive actor. I react quickly. So, if someone gives me a direction I usually can do it, “Bang”, right away. But, if I think too much about it, I give them too much time with it, I can over-think it, I can kill it. So, Eric was on set which was great. I didn’t just have to have time with him before the film, which we had, but him being on set, giving me that direction sometimes off camera, I will react to it well and I will do it. I was lucky to have him there.
You’ve got two really significant relationships on-screen. One, your scenes with Sarah Paulson, especially the gallery scene, are extremely emotional. And then the whole dynamic with Frank Langella. What kind of rehearsal time did you have, particularly with Frank, to develop this great rapport. I noticed these beautiful little inflections to the performance, like whenever he comes into a room and you’re sitting, you would stand; a respectful symbol that I think is not only very elegant but adds another layer to the story.
We didn’t have much time together before the film started. I spent a day with [Langella] when he got into town, spent a day at his house and we just talked. We just connected as people. We didn’t have to do much work because we really connected as people. I really got along with him. While we were shooting, his house – the one that he stayed at in town anyway – was across the street from the house that we shot at for the mansion. It was a great house. I would go over there early. I wouldn’t even go to my space to [get ready]. I would go over to his place. He’d cook breakfast. We’d eat some, we’d run the lines or work on the lines and then we’d watch YouTube videos or something and just talk and hang out. So, that connection was there and my respect for him personally was already there. That led me into Daniel’s respect. It wasn’t in the film or in the cut, but I saw Daniel as an abandoned child, either emotionally or literally, and didn’t have that father figure there which is why he’s not very good at it himself and also why he attaches himself to Warner and he has that immediate respect for him, so he fills that void for a bit. In one way he’s respectful to him, in other ways he’s defiant with him which is good because there’s a bit of a father figure there. Artistically there’s a father figure there.
Seeing you go toe-to-toe with Donald Sutherland in The Hunger Games and now toe-to-toe with Frank Langella, it’s wonderful to watch you with these iconic elder statesmen. You bring this tacit respect into the performance that I think so many other actors might fight. You have this easy natural grace with them and adds so much to your characters. I saw it in your performance as Seneca when we talked about The Hunger Games and now again. It’s lovely.
I’m lucky. Thank you.
Of course, I see The Time Being right after seeing Lovelace. Is there anybody who didn’t want to work on Lovelace?
[laughing hysterically] Okay! I don’t know. I don’t think so! I was only there one day so I don’t know how the entire filming went but it was cool to hang out. I was there the same day as other people. There was a big group by the trailers, actors you respect and just hanging out and talking about nothing, just bullshitting. It was just cool to be around that whole group of actors.
Was it the whole mystique of Deep Throat and Linda Lovelace that led you to want to be a part of that?
Yeah, and I loved that Amanda [Seyfried] was going to play her because I like Amanda a lot. I think she’s a fine actress. I was looking forward to seeing what she was going to do with it, even though I only had one scene with her. It was that, the cast was building up, the director I like. I think it’s the mystique of [Linda Lovelace] and the legend of Deep Throat that really made everyone want to be a part of that. You can’t miss out on that!
All the performances are so incredible and I think it’s one of the greatest and most fortuitous of Hollywood events with Lindsay Lohan being pulled from the other Linda Lovelace production Inferno back in 2011 and then have it announced that Amanda Seyfriend was cast as Linda Lovelace in Lovelace. Amanda brings this great naivete to the character that I don’t see coming from Lohan in any version of the story.
Oh yeah. I would say that’s true. That naivete? It’s true. I haven’t seen it myself yet so I have no idea how it is or I am.
I saw an early press screening here in LA and I admit, I was hysterical with glee. And watching James Franco play Hugh Hefner is delicious. There is nothing that he can’t do.
I’m hearing good things about [the film]. James is great! It’s true.
And I’m beginning to think there’s nothing you can’t do. Watching you go with these chameleonic roles – and you’re not just physically chameleonic, you’re emotionally chameleonic as well. You have not allowed yourself to get pigeon-holed into anything.
That’s what I want to do. I don’t want to get pigeon-holed. I’m lucky to have the opportunities. When I didn’t work in my 20’s, there was this other stuff, too, but part of it was that I was getting pushed and a lot of the stuff I was seeing was vampires and dark stuff. So, I started to say, “I’ve got to back away.” It gave me an excuse to back away anyway and made it all okay to do. I’m glad now. I knew in my 30’s it would be different and luckily it has been. The stuff I’ve done recently that’s not out yet is more of that. I’m getting opportunities to do things – I’m surprised. Everyday something comes across and I’m so happy that people are thinking of me this way. It’s really opening up now. It’s always what I wanted as an actor. To me, that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a bunch of different things and I couldn’t, so I became an actor so that I could be a little bit of a bunch of different things.
Just seeing what you’ve done since your re-emergence with There Be Dragons, it’s astounding to watch your growth as an actor, and the performances, and importantly, the roles that you’re picking. You’re not taking just anything out there that comes along.
Thank you. No, not, I don’t want to [take just anything].
What is it that speaks to you first when a script comes to you?
I should be fair to the truth. I’ve been lucky to have these films. They’re getting better and better every year as I’m building back up my career. I have a family so a lot of times there are things that I do that aren’t as complete as I would want them to be or they’re not quite the things that I want them to be. And you don’t get paid the same way you did in the 90’s in films [laughing] so you’re sweating it out from one film to the next wondering, “Am I gonna get something after this because it’s double scale and I gotta do it.” I’ve been lucky that in those things that are falling into my path, they’re just getting better and better and they have been diverse; I mean very different. I’ve been lucky that that’s happening. So, it hasn’t always been me with a selection of things and choosing them. In a way, they’ve been choosing me and I’ve just been lucky that the people who are doing that are in the positions to choose me or picking for things that have variety or are helping me grow as an actor and at the same time feed my family.
Right after or since The Hunger Games, have you seen a greater influx of offers coming in?
Oh yeah, I did. I think the movie, Gary [Ross] picking me for that movie, said to other people, “I trust him. I trust that he’ll be there, he’s got it together and he wants to work.” It wasn’t just like “Bam” because I did that, that all this big stuff came. It’s been slowly growing with bigger, more complete stuff and I think my quality is getting better, which I want. I want this slow burn. I had the bang at 20 years old and I don’t want that again although I could have dealt better with it this time. I want that slow burn. I want to slowly build up that trust with an audience and build up that trust with myself and other artists.
Now tell me, what can we look for with this HBO Open? Is it a mini-series, full series?
It’s a series. It’s a pilot for now, I should say. Ryan Murphy. It’s a very cool project. I can’t say too much about it. It’s about open relationships. It’s a great character for me because, like we’ve been talking about, it’s different from this sort of quiet thing that I do in a lot of films, which I enjoy doing. This guy [Evan Foster] has no filter. He’s all out, rude, but entertaining. He’s one of these guys that you just say, “Oh my God, I can’t believe you’re saying this and you’re saying it loud around a bunch of people but it’s hilarious!” It’s funny and it’s rude. I don’t play guys like that often so I’m really excited about it. I’m talking to Ryan about what direction he’s gonna go and it’s very cool. I love HBO. We all know this but I just want to say it, HBO is really doing something that’s amazing. It’s great to have a place like this where you go and it’s not all about the numbers that are coming in. They want to win awards. The way you prove yourself in these cable shows is you win awards. It’s not about the ratings, it’s not about who the sponsors are and all these things or how many episodes you’re gonna do. It’s about how are we gonna impress people; not necessarily win any awards, but that you want to. You’re raising the quality. I think the long form narrative has saved our performance art because without long form narrative, in all these procedurals, we’re not filling out characters and characters are actually what we’re interested in, at least a lot of us are interested in. I just thank God for HBO and I’m so happy I’m on a project there.
My buddy Scott Speadman is doing it with me, too. Scott’s amazing. We did a film years ago called We Are Built. It’s a silly film but we were able to improv each other, feed off each other. He’s a great friend. We’re gonna be able to click on this as well.
Wes, I have held off for years paying extra money for HBO since I spend the bulk of my time screening films and now, because of you, I am now going to get HBO just to see your show.
That’s awesome! I’m so grateful. I’m so happy to hear that. Yeah, I know you do lots of movies. But, it’ll be a awhile. We’re not shooting for a little bit, but go ahead and get it now!
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