Jason talks with aspiring young actors ...

Post by **Gillian** » Tue Jun 12, 2007 6:27 pm

Photo courtesy of providenceschools.org

Actor Jason Isaacs visited Mount Pleasant on Thursday, May 17, to speak to drama teacher Andy Nassefâ€™s two acting classes. Isaacs, who is the star of the Showtime series Brotherhood, is staying in Rhode Island while the series is shot on location in and around Providence. Isaacs, who has been in a variety of films, including The Patriot, Blackhawk Down and the Harry Potter series, discussed his life as a professional actor with the students. In his presentation to the two classes, he described how he broke into professional acting, what it was like to work on the different films he has done and how he approaches his work as an actor. He also shared behind the scenes photos from his various projects, as well as a variety of humorous anecdotes about life on the set. At the end of his visit, he encouraged the students to begin telling their stories using modern technology.

Foodie · Post by **Foodie** » Tue Jun 12, 2007 7:34 pm

That is so cool! Seeing that reminded me of how badly I'd love to see him on Inside the Actor's Studio. I think that would be the best thing ever if he got on that show. Thanks for sharing that article and picture!

-Foodie

lyra70 · Post by **lyra70** » Tue Jun 12, 2007 7:55 pm

That would be really cool, Foodie. He's never even been on the Biography channel and they've got one on everybody. But I would really LOVE to see him doing SNL. What's wrong with these people?? He would be a riot.

ScienceIsPhun · Post by **ScienceIsPhun** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 9:36 pm

OHhhh How desperately I want Jason to be on that show "The actor's studio" (i think that's what it's called) and host SNL.

He's such a funny guy in real life he'd be a total riot on SNL wouldn't he? Think of all the fun character spoofs he could do? Everything from Chaz to Lucius malfoy!

Anyways, brotherhood is being filmed in Providence RI am I right?

Has anyone read in the news about the cat who can predict a patient's death? Well...that cat (how incredibly adorable it is) is ALSO in Providence, RI so Jason...if you're reading this.....

STAY AWAY FROM CUTE CATS IN RI!!! You never know which one of em is the grim reaper!

(I love cats LOL And I think this "grim reaper" kitty is pretty cute too. Anywho, this is just a pointless rambling)

-Sip

Post by **Gillian** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 9:17 am

I heard about that, but I had no idea he was in Rhode Island. Just as well, too. They can keep their doomsday cat.

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 11:21 am

Here's kind of a sweet article about it:
http://www.boston.com/news/local/rhode_ ... _cat_feet/

A puzzling phenomenon. . .but given JI's oft-repeated distaste/discomfort about animals, probably best he not hear about it.

Helen8 · Post by **Helen8** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 11:51 am

I think the Grim Reaper name is unfair. It's not so much that the cat causes death as it can recognize when death is near and lies down next to the patient in his or her final hours, probably as a comfort.

Cats have a sixth sense about a lot of things: earthquakes, tsunamis, etc. Our second cat was a marriage counselor. When DH and I would exchange angry words (read: fight), Mischa would bite the feet of the person yelling. She would go back and forth between us until we realized what she was doing, and then we'd laugh and forget about the argument. We had a live-in shrink.

Yes! Let's all try to channel Bravo (pun intended) to ask Jason to be on In the Actors Studio. What an incredible hour that would be.

ScienceIsPhun · Post by **ScienceIsPhun** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 3:34 pm

Yea Helen8, I was just kidding about the cat being a grim reaper.

It was mostly because all of the news were talking about how the cat is empathetic to dying people, then some people (those devil's advocate like myself) asked the question, "What if the CAT was the reason the people were dying?"

Quite honestly though, I come from a science background so I'm pretty skeptical about everything. I suspect there's a pretty logical answer for why the cat is doing what it's doing. I think the reason the cat's behavior seems so amazing to us is because we see the world from a perspective that is different from a cat's.

Maybe the cat is exceptionally kind and gregarious. My own cat is a real spoiled baby who must always have people's attention.

Or maybe the cat is an odd one, like there are some odd people, and there is something about death that s/he enjoys. *SHRUGS*

-Sip

p.s.
Oh yea....I forgot Jason isn't a huge animal fan....

*LAUGHS* this will DEFINITELY creepy him out. I think it's hilarious (i'm laughing at his fear of creepy cats, not about people's deaths.)

lyra70 · Post by **lyra70** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 5:56 am

Is Jason actually afraid of all those animals he says he is or is his tongue firmly in cheek when he does those interviews? I've read him say he exercises by chasing a foorball about or taking the dogs for a run in the park. I'm wondering if he's just mentioned animals in a certain context where he jokes that he's terrified of them (like riding a horse in the Patriot) as he is always trying to say what a wimp he is (which I'm sure isn't true either).

ScienceIsPhun · Post by **ScienceIsPhun** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 9:57 am

Good Point Lyra!

I've never read any interviews about him walking his dogs (he has dogs?) but i'd love to get a link to those interviews.

I honestly doubt Jason is as big of a wimp as he makes himself out to be. I think it's adorable that he's so self-deprecating. I think he says stuff like that during interviews because 1)he's very secure with himself and 2)he wants to remind people that he's NOT really an evil church-burning evil bastard/wizard.

Every fan encounter with him has been glowingly positive though. I think he must be a great guy to work with (judging by that one extra's webpage commentary)

-SIP

Helen8 · Post by **Helen8** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 11:28 am

Or maybe the cat is an odd one, like there are some odd people

The Luna Lovegood of felines?

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 11:30 am

Lyra, I've never heard that he has/had dogs either. Regardless of how he feels about animals, the amount of time he spends gallivanting from one continent to another for work (U.S. for Patriot, Sween Norverber, then Africa for Black Hawk Down, then U.S. for Passionada, then Australia for Peter Pan. . .)would seem to discourage trying to keep pets. . .
But I'll agree with SiP that his protestations about his fearfulness/cowardice/general incompetence are at least exaggerated--I don't think Jason Isaacs wants to succumb to the big ego-inflating opportunities so rife in his line of work, and talking like that is a way of trying to keep himself in check.

lyra70 · Post by **lyra70** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 12:58 pm

I'll try to find it - I think it was a yahoo chat transcript where someone asks him how he stays in shape and he said something along the lines of loving to eat carbs but also having to take his kit off for roles and since he's vain he tries to keep in shape by running in the park with the dogs or chasing after a football or tennis ball. I think! If I can hunt it down I'll post a link.

lyra70 · Post by **lyra70** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 3:47 pm

Okay I did find it (from Chari's site no less), it's from a chat when he was promoting Dumb Waiter and this is the line:

<From Mandy Hodgkinson: I would be interested to know how you manage to stay in shape and juggle work and family commitments. Also are you still "on the wagon" smoking-wise?

Jason responds: Iâ€™m what they call a shape-shifter in Harry Potter-land. Staying in shapeâ€™s a nightmare with two small kids because mealtimes are always at the wrong time and you have to eat whatever they donâ€™t. Add to that the late nights on film and TV sets and the continuous rolling buffet of fat and sugar on offer to keep you awake and perky and my total lack of willpower and you have a lethal combination. Luckily, the knowledge that Iâ€™m likely to have to get my kit off on screen combined with my fierce competitive nature make me run after balls regularlyâ€”on a tennis court, football pitch or chasing dogs round the dog park. I havenâ€™t smoke for a long time nowâ€”except on screen; Chris in Scars smoked nonstop and that was really hard for me: first to start and then to stop.>

So whether those dogs are his or not is still a mystery as he does not refer to them as his. At least he didn't say he was the one being chased!

Post by **Hilary the Touched** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 5:27 pm

Brilliant!

I *do* feel somewhat vindicated though--as you say, he doesn't reveal whether those dogs are his.
I elect to believe that he was just being hyperbolic--tennis court, football pitch, tear-assing around with random canines.