He has an air of nobility about him befitting an actor widely recognized as one of the very best. Still, 66-year-old Morgan Freeman, while fully aware of his rightful place in the pantheon of Hollywood greats, remains unaffected. You can hear this in his voice — a singular, sensational voice that soothes like a lazy afternoon in Clarksdale — the serene Mississippi hamlet he sometimes calls home. There, Freeman’s a husband, a father, a sailor and the proprietor of a blues club. In the movies, he’s Red from “The Shawshank Redemption,” Hoke Colburn of “Driving Miss Daisy” and, more recently, God himself in “Bruce Almighty.”
Freeman’s latest appearance on the silver screen is as a Hawaiian magistrate in the comedy caper “The Big Bounce” opposite Owen Wilson and newcomer Sara Foster.
QUESTION: You spent a month shooting “The Big Bounce” on Oahu’s North Shore? Did being from the Deep South make it easy to adapt to the laid-back Hawaiian lifestyle?
MORGAN FREEMAN: I was born for the island lifestyle, which is like, “Hey, not today, man.” I live in the Caribbean, and when I’m not in the Caribbean, I live in Mississippi. We all follow the same time frame — slow and easy.
Q: There’s a convincing sense of camaraderie between the characters in this film, which Sara Foster attributes to exceptional casting. How important is it to find the right co-stars in order for you to effectively do your job?
MF: That’s a loaded question. Obviously, it’s very important to be acting with someone who, shall we say, inspires you. But that’s almost any actor. You’d have to be really bad otherwise, and, generally, actors who get into the movies have learned the craft. Even if they haven’t learned the craft of moviemak-ing, they’ve learned the craft of acting. So it’s important, but not very hard to find.
Q: What does Owen Wilson bring to the table?
MF: Owen is very, very intelligent. He’s often amused, and he sees irony and he plays with it. It’s fun to play with, because there’s always something going on behind his eyes. That’s why he’s still here, because he’s easy to dance with — very easy to dance with.
Q: Sara also mentioned you weren’t around much when the cameras weren’t rolling. What did you do during down time?
MF: I flew while I was here. I was a student pilot, trying to get my instrument rating, so I went to the Flight School of Hawaii and worked with a terrific guy there. And I now have my twin-engine instrument rating.
Q: Have you always wanted to fly?
MF: Yes and no. I started out in high school, wanting to fly. At 16, I was flying my desk up through 18,000 feet in a jet while my teacher was up there drawing on the board. I’d be at my desk, going like this (feigns talking in the cockpit), and the teacher would eventually say, “Morgan, leave. Get out!” But I graduated. Then, I quit... decided I didn’t want to be a killer — a fighter pilot. I gave up the idea of flying up until a couple of years ago.
Q: Music, on the other hand, is something that has always been a big part of your life, right?
MF: When I was 14 years old, I was in the high school band. I followed my brother, who was really a talented musician — and because he was so talented, he went headfirst into music, and I went right behind him. So life was all about music then, until our paths sort of diverged, and I somehow knew that I was not going to be a musician, but an actor. But as a kid, music is what keeps you all glued together. And I’ve always been drawn to it.
Q: Of the hundreds of characters you’ve played on stage and screen the past 40 years, which ones have stayed with you most?
MF: None of them have. Once a job is done, I don’t carry it around. Even while I’m doing the job I don’t carry it around with me. I was doing stage for about 20 years, and I was never one of those actors who needed to bury myself in the character so much that I couldn’t leave it on the stage. Once it’s done, it’s done. If they say, “cut,” that’s it – I’m out of character.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 30, 2004. Read the original PDF.