Morning Glory's Harrison Ford
In Morning Glory, Harrison Ford plays Mike Pomeroy, a curmudgeonly nightly news icon who's recruited to anchor a failing morning talk show opposite Diane Keaton's chatty Meredith Vierra wannabe. Rachel McAdams plays Becky Fuller, Daybreak's young and overeager new executive producer. This Hollywood trifecta cast (Bonus! Modern Family's Ty Burrell plays a small role too!) makes this heartwarming comedy a must-see. Oprah.com talked to Harrison Ford about the ever-grumpy Mike Pomeroy and when we'll see Indiana Jones again.
Rachel Bertsche: Your character, Mike Pomeroy, is kind of grumpy and arrogant. And yet you admit there is some of you in him. How so? Harrison Ford: You only have your own experience and personality to work with, so when I say that there's a bit of me in him I mean that I recognize the human instinct. I recognize the kind of behavior that Mike Pomeroy exhibits, and I understand why he would be anxious in the circumstances that he's in. I recognize why he would behave that way. I would not behave that way. He is an ass, but the movie needs an ass. It needs him being an ass to become affected by the relationship with the character that Rachel [McAdams] plays and for him to affect her. It was a combination of their antipathy and the fact that despite that they were able to have an emotional relationship that I thought was the great opportunity of the character.
RB: He is certainly a different character than most of the roles we have seen you in. Is that what attracted you to the role?
HF: Oh, definitely that's part of it. But also the people involved and the quality of the script.
RB: Speaking of the people involved, you work with Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams, two widely respected actresses, in this film. What were you most struck by in their performances?
HF: Rachel has a really interesting ability to do comedy with some real emotional underpinning. A lot of people don't have quite the capacity to do both at the same time, but there was always an emotional reality to what Rachel brought. And Keaton, well Keaton's a force of nature. She also has a truth to her, and she's a wonderfully capable technician. Working with her is like playing pingpong. You give her one in the corner with a lot of spin, and it will come back with the spin still on it. She's fun to work with. She's really smart and really interesting.
RB: The screenwriter of Morning Glory, Aline Brosh McKenna, had a huge hit when she wrote The Devil Wears Prada. This film has some similarities in that it takes place in an office with a difficult boss. Are you the male Miranda Priestly?
HF: I actually think the films are quite different. I saw The Devil Wears Prada, and the only thing I can say they have in common is a degree of real wit, and I think Aline is skilled with language and skilled with character, but I wouldn't say she has recreated that film. It's not imitative at all.
HF: Oh, definitely that's part of it. But also the people involved and the quality of the script.
RB: Speaking of the people involved, you work with Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams, two widely respected actresses, in this film. What were you most struck by in their performances?
HF: Rachel has a really interesting ability to do comedy with some real emotional underpinning. A lot of people don't have quite the capacity to do both at the same time, but there was always an emotional reality to what Rachel brought. And Keaton, well Keaton's a force of nature. She also has a truth to her, and she's a wonderfully capable technician. Working with her is like playing pingpong. You give her one in the corner with a lot of spin, and it will come back with the spin still on it. She's fun to work with. She's really smart and really interesting.
RB: The screenwriter of Morning Glory, Aline Brosh McKenna, had a huge hit when she wrote The Devil Wears Prada. This film has some similarities in that it takes place in an office with a difficult boss. Are you the male Miranda Priestly?
HF: I actually think the films are quite different. I saw The Devil Wears Prada, and the only thing I can say they have in common is a degree of real wit, and I think Aline is skilled with language and skilled with character, but I wouldn't say she has recreated that film. It's not imitative at all.
RB: This movie highlights a lot of the absurd moments of morning news shows. Why do you think people are so taken with them?
HF: I think that when you're watching them it's early, you're making your breakfast and you're only half paying attention. It's meant to be comfortable and not confrontational. And entertaining. Sometimes it gets beyond that and is interesting, but the tension for a guy like Mike is that it is part of the news division, and he doesn't think it's real news. And he's right. It's sort of a feature story.
RB: You've been in the film business for quite a number of years. In fact, you're the third-highest-grossing actor in film history. What do you think has allowed you to endure in a business that can be so fickle?
HF: I'm very lucky in that during the time I came up, in the '80s or early '90s, the movie business was probably in its heyday. More people were going to the movies than ever before. So I was very lucky that people were making a lot of movies and I was at the right age to play leading characters. So, I think that's the first thing I would say. And maybe the last. I've been lucky.
HF: I think that when you're watching them it's early, you're making your breakfast and you're only half paying attention. It's meant to be comfortable and not confrontational. And entertaining. Sometimes it gets beyond that and is interesting, but the tension for a guy like Mike is that it is part of the news division, and he doesn't think it's real news. And he's right. It's sort of a feature story.
RB: You've been in the film business for quite a number of years. In fact, you're the third-highest-grossing actor in film history. What do you think has allowed you to endure in a business that can be so fickle?
HF: I'm very lucky in that during the time I came up, in the '80s or early '90s, the movie business was probably in its heyday. More people were going to the movies than ever before. So I was very lucky that people were making a lot of movies and I was at the right age to play leading characters. So, I think that's the first thing I would say. And maybe the last. I've been lucky.
RB: What's next for you?
HF: I just finished a movie with Daniel Craig, with Jon Favreau directing, which I think has a very good shot at the market. It's called Cowboys & Aliens, so you might see just from the title why I think it has a shot of being successful. It was a very interesting project to work on, written by [Alex] Kurtzman and [Roberto] Orci, who have written everything these days except the latest version of the bible.
RB: Any Indiana Jones in our future?
HF: I haven't seen anything yet as far as a script is concerned. But I'm still hopeful that something will come up that I feel good about.
RB: So you're open to more?
HF: Oh, sure. If it's something that George [Lucas] and Steven [Spielberg] and I can all agree on, I'd be more than happy to do it.
HF: I just finished a movie with Daniel Craig, with Jon Favreau directing, which I think has a very good shot at the market. It's called Cowboys & Aliens, so you might see just from the title why I think it has a shot of being successful. It was a very interesting project to work on, written by [Alex] Kurtzman and [Roberto] Orci, who have written everything these days except the latest version of the bible.
RB: Any Indiana Jones in our future?
HF: I haven't seen anything yet as far as a script is concerned. But I'm still hopeful that something will come up that I feel good about.
RB: So you're open to more?
HF: Oh, sure. If it's something that George [Lucas] and Steven [Spielberg] and I can all agree on, I'd be more than happy to do it.
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