LONDON (AP) ā Now that he's been doing it for well over half a century, believes acting is much āeasierā now.
āAs you get older, you have a little more knowledge of life. When youāre young, you think you know a thing or two, but you donāt. When you get to my age, you know a couple of tricks for a living,ā the 86-year-old, who stars as in āOne Life,ā said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
His ātricksā to acting are very simple: āJust learn the lines, show up and try to be real.ā
To play Winton in the movie out March 15, a stockbroker responsible for Hopkins studied the way he walked and talked, watching his interviews and docuseries appearance. His performance was given the seal of approval by Wintonās son.
āIt was easy because I didnāt have to act old, I am old,ā Hopkins said, smiling.
Nevertheless, āOne Lifeā director James Hawes highlights Hopkinsā āyoung spirit,ā adding that the knight of the realm ābloody loves what he does,ā and has a continued passion for movies.
āHe would sit on an apple box on the edge of set and watch people rigging lights and rigging track because he has a joy for the world heās in,ā Hawes explained, adding, āhe just wants to be there and part of the process.ā
āOne Lifeā is told in two parts as the young Winton, played by Johnny Flynn, spearheads the extraordinary feat of arranging trains to transport children Hopkins plays the older Winton, looking back on his life but still haunted by images of children he couldnāt rescue ā specifically aboard the final train that didnāt make it out of Prague.
One poignant moment recreated in the film is Wintonās appearance on the British TV show āThatās Life,ā where he was surprised by a studio audience made up of descendants of the children heād saved. The extras surrounding Hopkins in the recreated scene were also related to the Kindertransport children, with Hopkins calling it a āpretty moving moment.ā
Hopkins says playing Winton is one of the highlights of his career, but playing Hannibal Lecter in āSilence of the Lambs,ā which won him his first Academy Award in 1991, āgave him a profound change in the direction of my life.ā
āThat was a favorite because it was easy to play, doesnāt speak well of my character,ā he said.
āI know that I can take no credit for anything, because I couldnāt have figured out my life," he added. "I donāt even know how I became an actor. It beats working for a living.ā
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In this story published March 7, 2024, The Associated Press erroneously reported the name of the director. The director of āOne Lifeā is James Hawes, not James Dawes.
Sian Watson, The Associated Press
