Hugo Weaving Interviews

Web Weaving
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Maxim (US)  New
December  2003 
"I was in boarding school and I had an English teacher who got a number of us to perform bizarre pieces infront of the class, like I Am the Walrus"
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Quantas  Fixed 28/2
December  2003 
"Apparently I was frothing at the mouth. Phil Quast was vomiting in the wings and a number of people in the audience were very disturbed by it"
 

Sun-Herald
October 19th 2003 
"I only did them [Lord of the Rings and The Matrix] because I wanted to get the little dolls of myself so I could play at battles"
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Metro October 24th 2003 
"Henry knows his flaws and so does Hugo."
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Hotdog December 2003 
"There were a few scenes shot in which Smith is fighting himself. I think they were all cut out though"
 
 
 

Peaches in the Can
Hugo has a marvellous, relaxed, friendly qualityabout him that everybone warms to
 
 
 
 

Sun-Herald: After the Deluge June15th-21st 2003 
"Martin is an absolute bastard in some ways"
 
 
 

Spin: Electric Warrior
June  2003 
"You Americans must get the impression that every year we take a vote to decide who we're going to send to the States"
 
 

The Daily Mail: Agent Smith's Schooldays
June 8th 2003 
"He played rugby, swotted up on his prep and sang in the cathedral choir...he was a pleasant, charming guy who loved practical jokes"
 
 

Men's Journal: Triple Threat
June  2003 
Which one is  real?
 
 
 

Empire June 2003 Issue 
"I got a hip injury...the doctors told me it was caused by steroid abuse, alcoholism or massive trauma. I said 'Massive trauma...you should see what I'm putting myself through every day' "
 
 

Pavement
May/June 2003 Issue 
"Kung Fu is something you should start learning when you're 6, not when you're 36"
 
 
 
 

West of Oz June 2003 
"He has spoken of the terrifying moment before each fit as possibly his "last few seconds on Earth" but "things that happen to you which are most awful are often the things you learn most from."
 
 
 

Starlog
May/June 2003 Issue 
"I'm a genre icon am I? It's really weird. The Elrond figure looks a bit thin faced and slightly cross-eyed"
 
 
 

Entertainment Weekly
April 18th 2003 
"The stunt guys  all had their heads shaved because I have quite a high forehead...so strange"
 
 
 

Premiere May 2003 
"The first thing I thought was 'I haven't lost that much hair have I'?...I'm quite glad I'm short sighted...it's pretty weird"
 

Radio Times: Profile
2003                              new21/2
At NIDA he was "very loved because he has a very sunny,  positive personality...he's a leader, he has great range and he's a star in all senses of the word"
 
 
 

Sunday Telegraph
December 2002 
"I very nearly died. Of course, everyone thought I was acting, even the person doing the strangling. That's what happens when you take art to extremes"
 
 

Lord of the Rings Merchandise Advert  new21/2
 2002 
 
 
 
 
 

TV Week: The Bite
13th April 1996
"How does an individual cope with loss of liberty through no fault of their own?"
 
 
 

TV Week: The Bite 
10th February 1996
The actors had only known each other a few hours before they had to strip and get into bed with each other
 
 

Juice: Hugo Weaving's Excellent Adventure
September  1994
"You've really got to push your balls right up...I just went for tightish jocks to keep myself in position"
 
 

Elective Fraud
Who Magazine: 25th July 1994 
"When I was frocked up [Harry] would laugh and laugh, and then I'd come towards him and he'd scream and run away. He found me both amusing and repulsive"
 
 

TV Week:
The Dirtwater Dynasty
 9th April 1988 
 
 
 

Stiletto: Don's Party
#53,   1988 
Weaving seems more than a little obsessed with being an actor: "It's more than just a job for me...what you learn in your life ends up on stage"
 
 
 

TV Week: Dadah is Death
1987 ~ on Barlow & Chambers, a Along Way From Home 
 
 
 
 

Movie: 
The Right Hand Man new21/2
1986 ~ publicity material 

Hugo Weaving Press Kits

Movie-specific Interviews

Peaches
Peaches in the Can
Homeboy Eyes World
Hugo Happily Swaps Hollywood for the Hills

After the Deluge
Father and sons New!Added 22/2
The Dream Team

The Matrix Trilogy
"When I read the script I laughed my head off"
The Voice, the Suit and PowerAde
"If someone were threatening the life of my child, then I'd be a good fighter. If somebody just wanted to steal my wallet, well, maybe I wouldn't worry about it so much."
If You've Seen Him Once, You've   Seen Him 100 Times
Peter Jackson:"Hugo is a director's dream. It's not just his talent, it's also his temperament. He's a great bloke with a terrific sense of humor"
The Matrix Rehabilitation 
Film 2003 meets... Hugo Weaving
 

Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
The Making of Priscilla
It makes Hugo extraordinarily trashy. Wearing a  wig which always looks as if it may be dislodged by his strange postures, he behaves like some drunken trollop in a country-and-western bar.
Queer Street Interview
"I know [Kermit] wears Kermit Klein jeans but he doesn't have one underneath them"

Being the Best Hugo Weaving He Can10th March 2004 Added 22/3
"When I was around 9 or 10 I was heavily into playacting and dressing up and imaginary games ...I led a very dreamy, imaginary life....Be the best that you can. That's the important thing in life."

Hugo Knows the Drill 4th March 2004 New!Added 20/3
"The jaguar put his paws on my shoulders and stared me straight in the eyes. I had to be very relaxed"

The Red Carpet is Not For Me 3rd March 2004 New!Added 3/3
"It was like a prep school version If...I was a prefect at the age of 13 and I remember wandering around at night, turning the lights out in the dormitories and listening to seven-year-old boys crying with their teddies"

Local stars are reeling in cinema audiences Jan 2004 
Hugo Weaving's four films earned more than US$2 billion (A$2.58 billion) in cinemas worldwide last year

Hugo Weaving: Profile November 2003 
He still has a home movie his father took of him playing Cowboy and Indians with his brother. “I played the Indian and I got him.”

"When I read the script I laughed my head off" Nov 2003 
"much more importantly, I am Hugo, and I'm a dad, and all these other things. So whatever people think of Smith or Elrond that's great, but that's nothing to do with me"

Digital Rogue to Defining Elf  November 2003
"I'm more interested in being, really, rather than performing. I'm interested in the minutiae of human psychology. The job becomes more like a detective tracking down and trying to understand particular thoughts and emotions a character might be having. I find myself moving closer and closer to that other world, to that other person."

Indies to BlockbustersNovember 2003
"LOTR... was more like this fantastic Kiwi family where everyone was jumping in and working their butts off" 

Matrix III Premieres in Sydney November 2003
A wide grin, a cheekily raised eyebrow - a year after wrapping Matrix Revolutions, Hugo Weaving still looks like he really relishes having played "the baddie".
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I was a big Drag Hero in School 25 Aug 2003 Added 12/4
"At Knox...we used to practice war cries in the corridors. But I'd grown up by that stage."

Celebs Reveal Their Worst Jobs July 2003 
"I just remember going around every day with coffee up my nose and in my ears."

Weaving was here 11th June 2003

The Dream Team June 2003 (After the Deluge)
Weaving's Martin has seen better days. Once a rock legend, he's now an embittered bad boy...Hugo said he would've paid me to do the role

Homeboy Eyes World May 2003 (Peaches)
On his Peaches character: "Back in the '80s he was a stuttering, idealistic union man who was a little bit awkward sexually...Now he's disliked intensely because he's shifted from a unionist to a foreman, his marriage is breaking apart, Jude hates him, and suddenly he's having an affair with this 17-year-old. "

MTV Movie House May 2003
Hugo talks about his favourite films
[pointing to Priscilla] "Which one is me? The one with the nice ass"

Dark Horizons: The Matrix Reloaded 12 May 2003
If you can't please your kids, who can you please?

Hugo Weaving talks about The Matrix Reloaded 5 May 2003
"I sometimes want another twin as long as he didn't really look like me."

Inside The Matrix April 19 2003
"He has spoken of the terrifying moment before each fit as possibly his "last few seconds on Earth" but "things that happen to you which are most awful are often the things you learn most from."

Hugo Weaving Seeing High Profile Work   July 23 2001
"I mean, pointy ears and a wig...you can't pass that sort of thing up."

Hugo Weaving: High profile and Homely   24th June 2001 
"Family became a very, very important stabilising factor in my life. I feel the importance of family and when I am away from my immediate family I get distressed"

The Grill July 2 2001
"You know, we can be so cruel to each other in the name of being kind"

Weaving the Reluctant Mr Hollywood  June 6 2001
"He has so much natural charisma, he's sexy and blokey and he can do the spunky leading man stuff. On the exterior he's casually charming, but inside he's passionate about his work. That combination is irresistible."

He's Good at Keeping Secrets  March 8 2001
"You do end up sitting around an awful lot"

Hugo Weaving dons 17th century colors August 21, 2000
The White Devil is being marketed as The Godfather meets Dynasty meets Reservoir Dogs: "Weaving handles classical language along with the best in the world"

Hugo went white, the devil wasn't acting ... but it was all right on the night August 19th 2000
"Stop the show," she shouted, leaping to her feet at the sight of actor Hugo Weaving slumped on the floor during the grim massacre scene at Thursday's preview.

One hell of a bodice ripper August 6th 2000 
"I don't think I know any actor who really, truly likes that glittery life. I think there's a lot of stress involved if you're up there"

From Matrix to gay romps and Guiana  September 6th 1999
His previous sex scenes in films, all with women, had been a "strangely enjoyable but also totally absurd" experience "I guess doing those scenes with Tom Hollander were even more absurd."

Hugo Weaving ~ Fit and Dangerous May 1999
"I hated that training"

Hugo au go-go 16th August 1998 
"I don't think I'm terribly neurotic. But I do think I always doubt myself. Maybe I put myself down enough to counteract any flattery. I get embarrassed if people think I'm something special."

Ducking & Weaving6th September 1998
"The real world sometimes seems less real than the fake one"

The Celluloid Interview 1997
"I'm much less self confident today. I actually went through a quite painful period because of that thinking that I was completely hopeless"

Hugo Weaving: Singing his heart out  1997 
"I just became a beard, and I thought of Jim Morrison and the kind of beard HE had, so it ultimately became this mask for me. I felt like a completely different being, with the extra long hair and beard."

Hugo Weaving without the frock April 1996
"I found LA awful, hideous, so soulless and plastic. if I do go to see Hollywood films I find I don't believe they illuminate humanity very much. I think they add to the great weight of rubbish."

Simply burning to tell good stories 8th October 1994 
 When That Eye, The Sky is performed at the Melbourne Festival this month, it will be without Hugo Weaving.``We couldn't get him out of heels for long enough." 

Dragged to Stardom 10th June 1994 
"your strengths are only the other side of your weaknesses. I'm not into blowing my own trumpet to get ahead. Acting to me is much more than just, 'Look at me, look at me!' "

Reaching for the Sky 31 December 1993
"He's trying very hard but basically hates himself. He's a fascinating character, has his own charm and puts in an enormous effort, but can't shake his father off his back - and he's also lusting after the daughter of the family."

Much ado about Hugo July 1993 
"I have much more insecurities about who I am than I do about the characters I play, or my abilities to perform. I have doubts about me."

Weaving a way out of villainy 1993 
On Bodyline: ``I'd go into country towns and people in pubs would say come outside and I'll kick your fucking head in, in a semi-joking way".

Title Deeds 19 June 1992 

Weaving a Spell 10th August 1990 
"I'm an optimist. I think acting should get easier as you get older. It's like life, it should get easier. If it doesn't, I think you've got problems."

When Baby Makes Whoopee Impossible 5th Sept 1989 
"I'm certainly looking forward to things being back to normal, but our relationship is definitely stronger for Harry."

Barlow & Chambers: A Long Way From Home October 22, 1988
"Australians are very insular people and don't have the ability to see globally and have a look outside their own life and outside their own suburb ... It's as though they don't have the ability to look into other people's lives."

Hugo Doesn't Kick Cats, Despite the ImageFebruary 1988 
Hugo Weaving is kind to cats, nice to his girlfriend and is always polite to elderly people. A cad he is not. Cats, particularly, know about these things.

Gentleman Actor Plays the Womaniser  October 1987
"I had an English education so I play a lot of upper-class people who are generally a little bit nasty. That's the way I've been cast. It's starting to irritate me. It's starting to bore me."