Chris O'Donnell: Whatever Blows Your Hair Back

Q: Can you understand why stars frequent hookers?

A: From people I have asked, I think movie stars go to prostitutes because they leave when you want them to. Whatever blows your hair back, I guess. It ain't my cup of tea.

Q: If it was, and you got caught as Grant did, would it be harder to deal with your girlfriend or your mother?

A: Oh God. Jeez. It would just be brutal all around. It would be tough in front of your mom, but you know your family's going to forgive you. Your girlfriend, on the other hand, might take a while.

Q: How do you like reading what's written about you?

A: It's kind of entertaining [but] I suppose there are limes I get really pissed off. I've never been someone the tabloids have been interested in until Batman Forever. Then, suddenly, I've had these stories written about me. It's funny to see them. There was one about how I rescued my bodyguard from a cave in Indonesia. [Laughs] It had absolutely no truth to it. There's been a lot of stories lately that I've purchased a ring for my girlfriend, Caroline. So she now gets letters of congratulations from all these people thinking that we're engaged.

Q: Is she waiting for you to ask her?

A: I don't know...probably...maybe.

Q: When it's in print like that, it's in the air, you've got to deal with it. Does she say, isn't it ridiculous? Or does she say, why don't we do it already?

A: No, it's not something that's suddenly in the air. I'm very close to my girlfriend, we talk about everything, so it's not something that comes up out of the blue.

Q: So, when are you going to marry her?

A: I...I...I don't know when. I'm very happy with the way things are.

Q: How difficult is it, when women must constantly be coming on to you?

A: It's not that difficult. It's a problem with my buddies; when they see the women doing this, they egg me on, asking, "Are you nuts?" But you can't have both worlds -- you can't have a real relationship and all the good things that come with it, and still get to play around.

Q: No one told that to Nicholson, Brando, Beatty, and most of Hollywood's leading men when they were in their prime.

A: Yeah, so? I did that in college and high school, and never met anybody I was really interested in. I'd hang around them for a while, anyway, though. To me, the relationship I have with my girlfriend I value more than just a fling here and there. It's what you believe in, it's part of your religion, the way you've been brought up, and your values. The way I live my life is not the perfect way, it's just the way I was brought up.

Q: You're saying, then, that you can resist temptation?

A: I'm not saying anything. I'm just very content with my relationship.

Q: You once said you were never able to have a serious relationship and trust someone. Why?

A: Is this another way of asking me. "Are you in love?"

Q: Are you?

A: Yeah. I've been dating her for two years. I definitely trust her.

Q: How did you meet Caroline? What does she do?

A: Her brother was one of my roommates in college, so she used to come visit him. She's working for a non-profit organization in Washington now.

Q: Chris, for someone your age, you seem almost too content. Charlie Sheen got thrown out of school, Al Pacino had a friend who hijacked a bus, Mel Gibson got into lots of fights. What about you?

A: I've probably done a lot of those things, but they're not too far in the past, so I might be incriminating myself. I can't think of any right now.

Q: You can, you just don't want to.

A: Well, of course I can. But I wasn't kidding when I said they can incriminate me. [Laughs].

Q: In high school a friend and I once made a sandwich using dog food, which we passed off as Italian meat loaf to some unsuspecting friends. Ever do anything like that?

A: There was this guy in college who, on Sundays, freshman year, you could throw anything you wanted into a cup -- you could spit, pour ketchup, people would blow their nose in it -- and, for 10 or 20 bucks, he'd drink it. I don't know how he did it, I used to die just watching him do it. I'd gag. That was nasty.

Q: Things can get pretty nasty when you're young and stupid.

A: It's amazing when you look back at things you did in high school, and you think, how did we make it through alive? I don't do as much stupid stuff as I used to, just because now I'm being watched. I can't get drunk and act like an idiot the way I used to in college. I've got a ton of stories I could tell you about, but I'm not gonna. I'd tell a friend, but I'm not going to tell the public.

Q: What about friends who will tell the stories about you?

A: I'll have to deal with those when they come out, one by one.

Q: Did you smoke any dope in college?

A: That's basically none of your business.

Q: You said you haven't yet read The Chamber. Are you much of a reader?

A: I don't have a lot of books. I've got bookshelves now, but no books. I've got to get some.

Q: What novels have had an effect on you?

A: Books, novels? I never read much, other than school textbooks, the newspaper and scripts. Growing up, I was a TV junkie: "The Brady Bunch," "Green Acres," "Laverne and Shirley," "Happy Days." I met Henry Winkler at the Batman Forever premiere. He introduced me to his kids, I kept thinking, My God, it's Fonzie!

Q: How has your family dealt with your success?

A: They love it. They get a little annoyed -- everyone's asking them for pictures of me, stuff like that -- but they also get excited. They're happy for my success.

Q: Do they caution you about fame?

A: Yeah, definitely. Sometimes they'll ask me to do something and I'll say I don't want to do it and they'll say, "You're so stuck up," or, "OK, movie star." Which is good, but sometimes they don't realize that when you're with your family you just want to relax.

Q: Does your family see you as a smartass?

A: I am a smartass. Totally.

Q: OK Chris, we're finished. Was it so bad?

A: I feel so violated when I do interviews. I don't even feel like I've talked about anything bad or crazy, really. But I get so pissed off with myself after I do one, like I hate myself, why am I doing this? I still don't know why I am. I'm not even promoting a film here.

Q: But they're putting you on the cover.

A: Yeah, that's why.

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Lawrence Grobel interviewed Kurt Russell for the Jan./Feb. issue of Movieline.

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