David Duchovny: An Actor and a Poet

Q: Are you superstitious at all as an actor?

A: Yeah, but not so much that I can tell you what it is that I do. I save my scripts, I have a sentimental attachment to them, with the notes that I write in the margin. Some of them are personal: "Think of Dad when you saw him peeing," or something secret like that.

Q: What did you think of Brando's comment that the Jews run Hollywood?

A: If you look at it objectively, Jews created a lot of the studios, Jews do a lot of the agenting, Jews do a lot of the producing. But when you say something like "Jews run Hollywood," it's an anti-Semitic comment, as if some other race or religion is better suited to running it. As if the Jews have an agenda in the movies that they make. I don't believe that. It's like when people say Jews are bankers. Maybe so--but why? Because they weren't allowed to own land and the only thing they could trade in was money or jewelry, that's why Jews are jewelers and bankers. Not because they love money and are all a bunch of Fagins and Shylocks, it's because that was the only avenue opened to a Jew in ancient Europe. I think it's a pity that Brando would have to say something like that, but objectively there's a lot of truth to it. But I think Brando's smarter and more sensitive than that.

Q: Some offbeat questions: what are your favorite foods?

A: I don't know, but let me tell you something funny. There's this snowboarding kid from the Olympics, Ross Rebagliati. He's from a little town not far from Vancouver, so when he got his medal reinstated and came back home he was all over the local news. He's 26 and has got nothing to say, but they're treating him like royalty. It was hilarious to watch. The mayor, who was trying to score big time, makes a big speech and brings out Ross and says, "We know you've had all the tough questions from all the journalists, but now we'll give you the real tough questions. We had our second-grade elementary class write questions they want to know." And they were questions like, "Did you ever lose hope?" And he gave great answers-- he's a snowboarder, and wow, he's, like, Jesus. So then they go, "What is your favorite food?" And he takes the mike and gives it a lot of thought. It's the most seriously he's taken any question. And comes up with "Honey Nut Com Flakes." He truly is a hero.

Q: What depresses you?

A: How I don't seem to have enough energy to do all the things I want to do. Life seems to be long enough, I just don't know if I can stay awake.

Q: What are all the things you want to do?

A: Write. Have my family. Be what my mom calls a decent man. I'd like to cause less pain than there is. Maybe alleviate some pain.

Q: Can you see using your celebrity to alleviate pain?

A: Maybe, but that's not something that I think about.

Q: So you're not going to walk through land mines to bring attention to that problem?

A: I don't see that happening.

Q: What did you think about the death of Princess Diana?

A: Everybody was saying what a tragedy it was. I felt people were missing the point. It's not a tragedy. A tragedy makes sense in some deeply human way. This made no sense. This woman killed herself trying not to have her picture taken. I understand why. I understand the kind of craziness you get into. I understood everything she must have been going through to get away from these people. But that's not a tragedy. Tragedy is, like, glorious. This was horrible and tawdry.

Q: Think anybody learned anything from it?

A: I think people learn for a couple of weeks. That's human nature. Lessons don't stick.

Q: What have you learned about paparazzi?

A: It's worse when the paparazzi think you're hiding. As soon as they know that they're bugging you, they smell blood. When I'm with my wife, a real primal thing happens. You want to show your woman that you can protect. I know the worst thing I can do is to lose my temper, but you want to. I find that being a celebrity has introduced me to situations where I cannot win. Even the discussion of celebrity is one you can't win.

Q: What rock musicians or groups would you pay to see?

A: Plenty of them. I always wanted to be Mick Jagger.

Q: What song would you like to have written?

A: I wish I'd written "Wild Horses." "Gimme Shelter." Or "The Long and Winding Road." Or "Tangled Up in Blue."

Q: Who are the three people in your life you know you can trust?

A: My wife, my sister and my manager.

Q: All three are women. Does that make you feel more protected or isolated?

A: Physically I feel more protected and isolated at the same time. I feel protected because it's hard to get to me on the set, but isolated because strangers know me and I don't know them, so I feel vulnerable. Ultimately I feel much more protected in marriage than anything else, because I feel protected by Tea in an intimate way, in a sense that she knows me and all the other noise that happens in the world of being known is just noise.

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Lawrence Grobel interviewed Nicolas Cage for the June '98 issue of Movieline.

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