Bryce Dallas Howard – on "Lady In The Water"

In M. Night Shymalan's much-anticipated follow-up to The Village, Lady In The Water, Bryce Dallas Howard plays Story, a mythical sea nymph who brings not only enlightenment to the tenants and superintendent of a large apartment complex, but unspeakable danger as well.

Q:  So, what was your favorite bedtime story?

Bryce Dallas Howard:  I know you are going to think I am just saying this because it pertains to this but The Little Mermaid was one.  When I was a kid I used to collect little glass mermaid figurines.  I was a little sick too, I loved the Grimm's Fairytales, all of them.  And then I got into like Christopher Pike books, at a very young age, those are not fairy tales.

Q:  How was it different working with m. Night [Shyamalan] this time?  Obviously you had a chance to work with him before and work with a lot of different directors since then, how was it different this time?

It was so wonderful.  I am a part of a theatre company in New York and I can kind of equate it with that because the wonderful thing about working with people over and over again is that the beginning, during The Village was like our introduction to each other.  There was the small talk and it was really nice and then just at the end of shooting we were really getting to know each other and really getting to know each others processes.  With Lady in the Water we were able to start at that place and that is a much more empowering place to start from.  Where there is no B.S. between us and he knows my instrument and he knows when I am in that place and he knows when I am not and I prefer that, honestly I really prefer that.

Q:  Were you ever frustrated?  You have such a sparseness of dialogue, were there moments where you go 'I want to say something!'?

No, actually it was really nice.  It is something that I actually realized when we were first starting to rehearse. I thought gosh, I say in my personal life, I use so many words to create a boundary, to create a wall so that I am not actually communicating with people.  The thing that is wonderful about the story is that she is able to communicate so much without saying hardly anything so I tried to steal that a little bit, into my own personal life.  I think it is a much more powerful thing to listen than it is to talk.

Q:  Was this the most comfortable shoot ever because you are just wearing Paul's [Giamatti] shirt the whole time?  Did you put on a shirt everyday and you were just ready to go? 

Yeah, it took about three hours in make-up each morning in the make-up chair just to get rid of these freckles.  It was nice having a nice breezy costume and thank God it was in the summertime so it wasn't cold.  At first honestly, I dress very modestly so I was like 'Oh my God, my legs have not seen the light of day since I was six years old!' so that was a little something to get used to.

Q:  How much time did you spend in the water?

Just mostly in the shower, I think the irony is that this film is called Lady in the Waterand Paul is in the water almost the entire time.  Pretty much just in the shower and there is like one scene in the pool.  I am damp, not drenched.

Q:  Did you talk to night about the whole mythology?  Did you work on a more elaborate theory of the mythology to sort of help with the grounding in your own head?

Yes and no.  It is described very efficiently in the film.  The whole mythology is there and that was obviously in the text, in the script.  As far as like where she came from and who she was and what kind of interaction she would have had with human beings and that kind of specificity then, yes.  Those were dialogues with him and created on my own.  It was really fun to get to have something that we could go in completely different directions and it would all be alright.  There was no real research that we could do to stand upon to make decisions after reading all of this.  We needed to totally and entirely use our imaginations.  I say 'our' but it was really Night's imagination, it was really just me asking him a series of questions and being like 'Ok, how can I be the instrument that you play?' and that was very freeing as well.

Q:  When you are on a movie with a director that has such an intense calling, and a vision, like Night does, when the experience is over does it stay with you for a long time?  Do you see the world differently when you are walking around or can you just put it away and go on to the next thing and go back to your normal life?

No, it stays with me which is nice, I prefer that.  I still have not gotten to the place, nor do I ever kind of wish I get to this place, where I am able to really separate my work and my personal life. My work is my hobby, it is the thing that I really honestly love to do most, so when I am working with such brilliant people with such visionaries I hope to take these lessons from them.  I hope to use that in my own life and in my own work in the future.  The experience with Lady in the Waterwas very powerful and it absolutely did stay with me.

Q:  I heard that you actually cried because you heard about this film.  What was it in particular about this film that called to you?

I think that the moment you are referring to was the moment that Night offered me the part and I hadn't read the script at that point.  It wasn't like a breakdown, I was just kind of misty eyed, because I had just seen The Village for the first time and my parents were there and Night's family was there, his children were there, and as he had been editing The Village he had been telling me about this movie called Lady in the Waterthat he was getting ready to write, and it was like 'Lady in the Waterlady, that's so like Lady in the Waterthat's great, hope you have a great time doing it.'

And so we were there at his office and I had just seen the film moments before.  I thought my God, I can't believe I am in a movie and this movie and what a great experience that was and we were walking back and he just turned to me and was like 'Um, Bryce I want you to be the lady in 'The Lady in the Water'' and I was like 'What!?' and then he told his little girl and that's what really got me because they knew the story was created for them.  He was like 'Bryce is going to play the [lead] and they were like 'Oh you are going to be really good!' it was so… it was just a special moment for me.

Q:  Seeing the movie made me think of a lot of other natural realist writers like Paulo Coelho. Did seeing yourself in the film, as the aftermath of the film, or even during the film, did you read some of this writing or did you guys talk about any of that kind of material?

Yeah, did you see his ballet that he did with ?? 07:48 recently?  He didn't but a company did it with his book.  I would say that of his writing this is 'The Alchemist' is clearly reflected in this and that journey of you have to, you are in a place and you are lost an then you have to go on this crazy journey to come back to right where you were to realize that you had it all along.  The fact is that obviously this is a revelation so don't reveal this but the fact that Cleveland Heep is the healer, he was the healer all along.  He was a Doctor before he lost his family and he needed this journey in order to discover that.  I think that I s a very old theme that I think is an important fable in life. 

Q:  Did you go back and read anything as a result, or have you even seen the movie?

I am always kind, I have a library at my home and I am always picking up books and randomly looking through them.  I am very drawn towards material like this so yeah, I will sometimes look through things.  Mostly the stuff that I wanted to read, to be honest, for this film was just stereotypical.  Fairy Tales, what are the lessons that one teaches their children through these elaborate fairy tales and what are those lessons really about?  That is like an adult fairy tale.

Q:  How do you prepare for doing The Village?  How does that compare, to prepare for leading roles?  Have you kind of wanted to play smaller roles in movies to, a lot of actors play small roles and then look forward to leading role, is it hard having to get those?

Oh yeah, it's a rough life. [Laughs]  No, I understand what you mean, no it's not hard.  I would say right now my main goal is to work with great film makers, that is the thing that I really want to be a part of, who are telling stories that I find fascinating and exciting and fun.  I want really fun experiences, I know that is superficial but I do.  So for instance I am doing 'Spiderman 3' and that is a smaller role absolutely but it was such a great experience so for me it's easy for me to say because I have had mostly pretty meaty roles, but it's not quite about that.  It's more about the experience and what I can get from it and what can I learn.

Q:  How different was it being in New York, and being a blonde?

It was awesome.  There was a moment during Spiderman in New York where I had to like fly down from 5 stories with Spiderman and right down the street was where I got my first theatre job in New York.  I actually walked over there and talked to all the ushers cause all the usher were still there and I was like 'Guys I am doing Spiderman!'.

Q:  Were you wearing a wig or did you dye your hair?

I dyed it.  I actually I just got my hair back red, a version of red.  It was very nice to be back home.

Q:  Your father [Ron Howard] is obviously a great director and worked with these other great directors, is there anything you get from him that you see in these other guys and you say this is what a great film maker does?

I would say two things. Above all else humility, I would ay that a great filmmaker has humility.  They are willing to listen, they are willing to learn, and they are constantly pushing themselves. I would say that a great film maker is a very humble person.  Also the second thing that I think is equally as important, is integrity.  They speak the truth, they don't manipulate, what they promise to deliver to the person they do.  I think my Dad has those things and all of the directors that I have worked with, no question.

Q:  Can you discuss the ups and downs that come with having such an iconic father?

The up sided is something that I don't know if, you guys wouldn't personally be able to relate this probably because you don't know my Dad as a Father, but its just having my Dad as a Father. He is the greatest thing in my life, I get emotional every time I talk about my Dad, but then I would say the down side…there is no down side.  It is just constantly or occasionally actually, there is some misinterpretations about what our relationship would be like or why I am where I am at and how it pertains to him.  That is okay, I am willing to take that, that's all good.  I have the greatest Dad on planet earth.

Q:  It must be a lot of fun though.  Does he ever tell you funny things?

[Laughs] Yeah, I have to tell you one thing.  I was just on a family trip that I just got back from 2 days ago and we were on a boat.  It was like 31 of my family members and they were on these Jet Skis and I am kind of, it kind of ties into the movie, I am actually a little bit afraid of the water.  Especially like open water, I am just convinced, I'll just be like swallowed by a shark or something.  They were like 'Bryce, you have to conquer your fears.' So I was like 'Alright!' so I went out in the water and I swam for like 2 minutes, looking down the whole time, then I got back in.  They were like 'Ok you have to go on a jet ski.' So I went on a jet ski with my husband and I was like holding on to him and my Dad and his brother were on a jet ski.  They were like whizzing by really, really fast and they kept threatening to come towards me and I was like 'Stop! Stop!' because I thought I was going to fall into the water.  Finally got really close and said 'Dad, don't betray my fucking trust!' and then the next day he made T-shirts and he made everyone wear the T-shirts that said 'Don't betray my fucking trust' and I was just like, I try not to swear that much and it just came out.  He does have a very good sense of humor.  That was his sense of humor last week. [Laughs]

Q:  Does your father throw out advice if you have a part, or do you keep that separate from your career?

I don't intentionally try to keep that separated; its just, yes I do go to him for advice if I feel like I need to, but mostly the advice I want from him have to do with my emotional state of being.  If I am in a good emotional place then I ultimately end up making decisions that I am confident about or proud of.  If I am saying 'Oh, I don't know what to do about this deal that I made.' It always ultimately goes back to why am I feeling insecure?  That is something that I will actually go to both of my parents about.

Q:  Do you get excited about it when you can show him something?

Yeah, he was like, 'Can I come by the set?' he really wanted to come by the set for Spiderman, especially.

Q:  Can you talk a bit about working with Paul specifically?  I believe that he is one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood history.

I agree with you, in fact I was upstairs watching 'Cinderella Man' just now, it was on television, I don't know if you want to go turn it on.  [Laughs]  I was watching and I turned to my best friend and I was like 'He I swear to you, when he is 88 years old people are going to say that is the greatest that ever lived.' He is the most unbelievably talented man.  There is no neurosis that comes with his talent. He is just available.  He is not the kind of actor that has to go and disappear and be all methody and stuff like that, not like that is a bad thing when that is someone's process.  But it is very telling that he is always available, always on point, and always self deprecating and humble and willing to totally change his performance 180 degrees from one suggestion.  He is someone I really admire.  Also one of the most well read men I have ever met.  Anything, just incredibly well read.

Q:  Was there any talk between you and him about the fact that he had just worked with your father?

Totally.  It was a little slightly inappropriate thing that he had just worked with my Dad and I come to set the first day and I am wearing this little shirt and it was probably something where I was like take off the shirt and he was like 'Ahh, I know your Dad.' [Laughs]

Q:  What is next for you?

There is a short film that I have written that I am directing in August.  In Los Angeles, with Alfred Molina.

Q:  What is your interest in doing a short film?  There is a great festival.

Yeah, it's through an organization that supports this charity called Film-aid about using the power of films to educate and its Glamour Magazine and Cartiere are financing it, it's a wonderful opportunity and I am being very taken care of and it's great. 

Q:  Do you see directing in your future someday?

I don't know.  I have a lot to learn I have to say, I have a lot to learn.

Q:  What is happening with your theatre company?

They are, we are in the process of getting ready for another show but I am not acting in the show.  I mostly am working as a producer right now. 

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Staci Layne Wilson reporting