Just when you thought you had a handle on HBO's WWII miniseries The Pacific, along came Rami Malek to mess with your expectations. As the war-ravaged Merriell "Snafu" Shelton, Malek is haunting and morally ambiguous, with a Cajun drawl that's creepy one moment and heartbreaking the next. It isn't just the character, though; Malek seems to operate on an entirely different wavelength from the other actors, with an interest in discovering unique cadences and behavior that has helped to make his past roles as a suicide bomber on this season of 24 and a gay teen in The War at Home just as memorable.
As The Pacific draws to a close, Movieline spoke to the 28-year-old actor about how difficult the miniseries has been to shake, and what's next for him in the Tom Hanks-directed Larry Crowne.
You shot this so long ago, and it's such a juicy role for you. Have you been anxious for it to come out so that people can finally see it?
It was actually the opposite. When we finished, I was so torn up by the whole thing that I was not in the mood to go out and get another job or another audition. I was very depressed, to put it frankly. It took time to get over all those feelings and clear them out because I was so submerged in all of that. It was an advantage to have some time to really put it behind me, and to deal with it in a manner that I wasn't really able to while I was out there.
Does that tend to happen to you when you take a role, that you absorb it to that degree?
It does, it always does. I never think I fully shake any. I'll even watch them later on when it airs, reluctantly, and I'm still moved by it and brought back to the exact same place where I was when I was shooting. That becomes another difficulty as well.
Snafu was a real person, but The Pacific isn't afraid to delve into the darker parts of his character. This isn't some straight-up hagiography. Did you ever feel hemmed in by the responsibility you had to his actual memory and family?
I didn't, because it was a way of showing what the brutality of war can do to a man. If I shied away from that, I don't think I'd really be able to express that sentiment. A lot of these men have a really hard time speaking about the truths of war, and in my own way -- not having been in battle -- I got to do it with a certain hindsight. I did a lot of research and I put together what these ravishing effects of war would have on a human being, and what they might cause someone to end up doing when they're trapped in the middle of it, feeling like there's no escape. For me, I looked at Snafu and I thought, "Here's a guy who probably never thought there was any hope of leaving these islands." It began to be his own world, in which he could practically get away with anything, knowing it was his only way to survive.
His relationship with Eugene Sledge is very interesting. It's almost as though Snafu is protecting him.
Early on, I realized that we were going to have a relationship. It was written that way in the book, it was written that way in the script, and I thought if there was any way to salvage [Snafu's] humanity, it would be through the character of Sledge. He's this man who reminds him of who he used to be, or the man he lost on the mortar, the man Sledge was probably replacing. Once I realized that, I thought there was a part of [Snafu] that wants to make sure that he doesn't lose the beauty inside of him, the way that [Snafu has]. Even selfishly, maybe [he] could redeem some of that, in some weird way.
You said you relive the shooting when you watch your performances. Have you been watching it as it airs every week on HBO?
I remember first coming in to watch early cuts that [the producers] had put together. I think they just wanted to ask me what my thoughts were, but it was very, very difficult to watch. I remember wanting to leave the screening room at a few points. I think that was a good way to break it in, so now when it does air, I do watch it. There are some parts that are difficult to watch, and I might pull away and go grab some water or feign having to go to the bathroom just to escape. It's become a little bit easier to watch, but it's still kind of difficult.
So what is that experience like when you watch, say, Snafu chuck pebbles into a corpse's head? Is that a startling image for you, too?
It is, extremely. I remember that I thought, "What brings a man to do this?" and to get to that place was extremely difficult. So I'm watching it, and I remember before and after each take where my mind was. It's difficult, and sometimes other people's reactions make it even harder. It elicits a different response in everybody, and I remember watching that episode with a few people and some people were just in utter astonishment and some people had to laugh to quench whatever feeling they were having at that moment. It's kind of hard to remember what that was like and share it with the company that I was in. It's best to be watching it with the guys [from the miniseries]. Sometimes we get together and watch it, and it's easier in that respect.
What was that shooting experience like? I mean, you want to stay absorbed in your character, but at the same time, you're shooting with dozens of young guys. Was there a whole lot of unexpected humor?
In the beginning, I think we were all on our toes, and it wasn't as fun of an experience as we would have wanted it to be. As it went on, and the brutality and the gruesomeness of it all started, I think we acknowledged this event that we were faced with. We began to realize that the only way to escape was to hammer out some jokes on a daily basis, and we all thought we were comedians. Whether the crew thought we could tell a joke remains to be seen. [Laughs] We were good at making each other laugh, and we had to be. I'm a pretty jovial guy, but there were times I showed up halfway through and people were looking at me like, "What happened to him? He used to be a fun-loving guy." It really starts to wear on you. You're going out there every day and you're seeing dead bodies that have been so well-crafted by the art department. You're put into a battlefield at 4am in the morning.
You're also in the next Tom Hanks film, Larry Crowne. Was that something you had to audition for through normal channels, or did Tom know you well enough by that point to offer you the role?
Tom and I had a very strong relationship. While I was working on [The Pacific], I remember he sent me a note, and it was pretty confidential. I don't even know if I'm allowed to say, but he was very respectful in his words about what I was doing. When I got back [after shooting], I saw him and he gave me a big hug, and that's what it was: He was just very proud and appreciative, and it's stuck with me. Then he called me and asked me to read this script [for Larry Crowne], and before I knew it, I was in the movie. It just shows you what kind of man he is. He knew what we'd been through, and this was his way of acknowledging it. He's a very compassionate guy, and everything the world sees in that man is very true.
Can you tell me anything about your character?
I play a young man by the name of Steve Dibiasi. I'm not sure how much I'm allowed to tell you...[Larry Crowne] goes back to junior college, and I play one of the kids in college who gives everybody a bit of a hard time. He's got a kind of funny side, he's oblivious to things. He's an odd character. I kind of have a hankering for these guys; whether they're odd or not, I kind of make them that way. [Laughs] I take pleasure from it.
You're acting like you're not allowed to tell me much about the movie, and it's been about as oddly low-profile as Tom Hanks/Julia Roberts movie can be. Is Tom just keeping things secret? Is that the way he likes it?
I think so. Everything I've done has been very confidential, and I'd like to keep it that way. I don't want to be the one to spill the beans! As far as Tom goes, I think he's very passionate about what he's doing and he wants to keep it close to home. It's a small project and that's the way he wants to keep it. I don't actually know, I'm just speculating. You can call me and I'll open up about it once he does! [Laughs]
You've got an identical twin brother. Is he an actor as well?
He has the very great profession of being a teacher, in Hollywood. It's really great to see him, because he definitely has that creative sensibility as well, maybe even more than I do. To see him teach, he just has great flair, and it's so interesting to watch. He's been very invaluable in making me remember that I'm not just an actor. I have family here, and these are people who don't just respect me but challenge me and keep me from becoming a Hollywood product.