David Oyelowo’s Acting Heroes | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend

who were the actors that you were. watching when you were seeing Cinema. when you're seeing film when you're. coming along that were you thought okay. that's that's that person is inspiring. me that person's showing me the way I I. mean my two big heroes uh probably. Sydney potier and Daniel de Lewis um my. mom my mom's favorite film was Guess. Who's Coming to Dinner um so we would. watch that time and time again and and. his poise you know someone who looked.

like I get emotional just thinking about. it but someone who who looked like me. yeah and and had the bearing of my. father and my uncles and um that was. just not something you saw almost at all. uh certainly not in films that were. universally acclaimed like in the heat. of the night as well which is just a. formative piece of Cinema for me but.

then also just seeing Daniel de Lewis in. my left foot and and and just thinking I. simply do not understand how it is. possible for an actor to achieve that. level of embodiment when I found out he. was able-bodied when I found when I. heard him speak and he was so opposite. to that it was the moment I determined. that as an actor the thing I want to. Aspire to be the most is chameleonic. someone who you roll to roll you're. going which way is he going to go next.

because that's what I love about Daniel. deis that's what I love about Christian. Bale that's what I you you know love. about about about what I get to do is I. have no interest in playing some kind of. version of myself I always want to go to. the character yeah there's also there's. a obviously there's a tradition in. movies where someone's always playing a. version of themselves and and and not. just Americans but worldwide people make. room for that and they really like it. some of the iconic movie stars are just. playing.

you know you almost want to laugh when. they say well my character in this like. what mean your character in this right. I'm sorry clinty would I love you but. you're always let me guess you're. squinting you're a man of few words and. you're going to kick the out of. somebody if they wrong you and we love. you for it and we love you for it don't. get me wrong we love you for it but uh. this idea of that you can shape shift. you say that uh you look at you know. Daniel de Lewis and when you first saw.

said I don't understand and I look at. what you do and I think yeah I don't. understand I don't understand that I. have incredible admiration for it but. almost a it's mystical to me it's. something that's so far beyond anything. that I could do and I love to see it's. it's very inspiring that you use this. gift. to uh I don't you use it for a very. Noble purpose which I think is a lovely. thing thank you thank you well I'm so. glad you Ed the phrase mystical because. this is where you can kind of get into.

what kind of feels uh conceited. territory but to me you know in the. moment of playing Dr King um or even. with bass Reeves I remember us shooting. on an actual Plantation and it was a. plantation where 80 people had been. enslaved back in the day it was an. incredibly difficult Place To Shoot. because I kid you not the ghosts of that.

fact were present and the nature of the. scenes that we were. doing were were all the more difficult. all the more true all the more lived in. for that fact and there is a kind of. exchange that is Mystical spiritual and. it's about how much you're prepared to. open yourself up to that in order to be. flowed through by the history by the. writing by the Direction by by the other.

actors with the audience in mind what. are you by way of service offering up to. them and what we do what I am so. privileged to do is you're constantly in. the pursuit of trying to capture. lightning in a bottle and there are. certain circumstances under which there. is more likelihood for that to happen. than than others and it's about an. openness and that openness you know if. I've done my work if I am staying to a. certain degree in the character if I'm. open to what is coming at me by way of.

stimulus that has been the moments where. even now when I watch Selma I have a a. complete disconnection from it because I. was in a place I I almost can't fully. quantify or understand because of the. Alchemy of what was happening in that. moment and that's the joy that's the. benefit of when you're doing it at the. highest level with directors like Ava. Duan and incredible actors around you. and and great writing it's it's it's a.

it's a mystical thing you you mentioned. something that I completely believe in. of course it makes sense that you go. back to a uh a plantation and pick up on. this trauma you know what I mean that. you would and and that would. inform what you're doing I I'm so glad. that you you you've talked about this. because it's one of the tricky things as. a producer you face when you're trying. to tell a true story and you go oh yeah. there's a good tax break in Canada for. for and and go actually with this story.

I think we've got to fight to be in the. place and every time it has yielded. intangible but indisputable benefits you. know we had that we shot on the Edmund. Pettis bridge for Selma we were there we. were on the Montgomery State House steps. where Dr King gave that speech and I. it's going to sound so crazy but that. morning of giving that speech the FBI. had told him you will be assassinated if.

you do that speech there's it's too open. we have no way to protect you and he. chose to give that speech anyway and I. woke up with this just overwhelming. sense that I was going to be. assassinated that day I know it doesn't. fully make sense but it wasn't till the. end of that day where we had shut the. scene and it was done I found myself. going gosh I'm still alive and it was to. do with being in that place we shot a. United Kingdom in Botswana they wanted. us to shoot it in South Africa there was.

a completely different vibe from being. there same thing with queen of cartway. shooting it in cartway there is energy. that you pick up finds its way onto the. cellid Finds Its way through the screen. into the audience and at the end of the. day the the the true job of a. Storyteller is the pursuit of the truth. and the audience can feel when they are. getting a watered down version of that. and you come out just going the film was. okay you know necessarily saying it.

wasn't true or but when you have been. served up something that feels truly. authentic it speaks to the human being. in you which is why the best films we. love are you have a protagonist that you. can tether yourself to and you go I am. relating to this character I am working. out what I would do in this scenario. that's because they are a. three-dimensional believable human being. that you can relate to I'm invested in. them too that's it I'm invested in them. I really care what happens to this. person right that can only happen if.

it's true if it feels true to what it is. to be a human being well I could talk to. you for 50 hours I I seriously could. like and and uh you know it's it the. delightful thing there are many. delightful things about you but the fact. that we started out there's so much just. laughing just really good natur humor. and then we get to this this other place. that's really beautiful that's the my. favorite kind of podcast conversation. and just I shouldn't even say podcast. conversation that's my favorite kind. conversation it really means a lot to me.

so um go forth continue to do great. things thank you and uh I am just a a. massive fan you're welcome here anytime. I appreciate and uh you know if you see. a really good part for me as as a produc. stat BL stat you could have ended you. could have end I'm just saying you could. have ended it sort of a later in life. Maryland just before the end I can see. you being a incompetent.

Senator I I can see that in. cenus I'm there fabulous I am there not. your production I don't think you know. what he'd bring it. downal David would be recommending me to. every other Shakespeare producer in. London and they' be like well how come. you don't how come you no no no I think. he's better for you he's going to be. fantastic his reviews Rave and all the. other ones exactly.

yes mission accomplished we took down. colb Brien has ruined yet another. Shakespearean. play every time you play a role you. cast uh David bless you thank you so. much for being here you this was great.