Bryan Singer has directed some of Hollywood's more complicated films, most notably The Usual Suspects and most recently the effects-laden X2. That's why he needs his personal space to be breezy and easy.
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There's a gray granite X about the size of this magazine on the living room mantle in director Bryan Singer's contemporary Hollywood Hills home. Given that his last movie was the superhero smash X-Men, and his next is the current follow-up X2, it's easy to assume that it's a prop from one of the films. Better yet, maybe it's a gift from an X-groupie? "That's actually an upside-down candelabra from IKEA," says Singer, lifting the tchotchke up to reveal the candle holes. "My assistant found it and thought it would be appropriate," he laughs. "These sofas we're sitting on? My housemate, Vanessa, got sick of there being nothing, so she bought these at a garage sale for $25 each." Though one can forgive Singer, 37, for not being quite ready for his "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" close-up, he is learning: he just splurged on a shiny Bechstein baby grand piano.
Time, of course, is a factor in said splurging. He's been up to his eyeballs in X2, prepping the megamovie sequel for what he has been told is the largest simultaneous global release of any movie in history. "We already introduced the characters and their universe so now we can have fun," he says. "There's a little more time, a little more trust, a little more money." And a little better wig on Halle Berry? "Oh yeah," he says, laughing. "Everything in the movie kind of grew up a little bit. Anna Paquin has gone from being a little girl to a gorgeous woman. And Hugh Jackman is in much better shape. He looks spectacular."
Though Singer's adolescent obsession was movies, not comic books, he immediately connected with the 40-year-old saga's story of mutants turned do-gooders. "I always felt like an outcast," says the director, who grew up in Princeton Junction, New Jersey, making Super 8 movies that starred his childhood friend, Ethan Hawke. "Everyone feels like they're alone in who they are. Wouldn't it be great to go to a place where you were understood and could learn to celebrate who you are? That's what Professor Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters in X-Men is all about."
Singer's love of the movies is evident from his wall art--giant foreign posters for 8 1/2 and Apocalypse Now adorn his dining room while his basement houses his collection of Polish movie art. "Instead of promoting the obvious things, like big stars, they promote the essence of the story," he explains, gesturing to a poster for Cabaret, which depicts a swastika formed from the fishnet-clad legs of dancing girls. When it comes time for movie watching, he retreats to his bedroom, where he has a 40-inch Sony TV and a Sony DVD player. "There are several movies I try to watch once a year," says the USC film school graduate. "Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Crimes and Misdemeanors, Pink Floyd's The Wall, Lawrence of Arabia, Citizen Kane, The Godfather and The King of Comedy."
But what about when the TV's off? Singer's open, airy house in the Hollywood Hills would seem to be the ideal setting for some delightfully debauched Hollywood parties, but Singer says he's too busy working to even fire up the hot tub. "I don't really hang out in the Hollywood scene," he says, walking back into his front room.
So what does the director do to destress? "I make sure I spend a minimum of 15 minutes a day at my local Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf," he says, referring to the ultrapopular SoCal Java chain. "On my request, we flew the inventor of the Vanilla Ice Blended up to Vancouver to teach our craft services person on X2 how to make them. I had two Ice Blendeds every day for over a hundred days of shooting." Realizing that may sound a bit extravagant, Singer plops back down on his $25 sofa and adds, "It's the only really decadent thing I've ever done."
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