Jason Sudeikis has never seen Game of Thrones – which works out well, because Maisie Willams has never seen Sudeikis on Saturday Night Live. So, yes, here are two actors coming together for a new film, who both come from extremely popular television series, yet neither has seen the other’s work. And you know what?: This all seems to work out for the best for them because there are no preconceived notions. Or, maybe more importantly, it stops Sudeikis from asking Williams about Arya Stark and Game of Thrones spoilers. (Which, yes, most human beings would probably do.)
This was supposed to be a longer interview, but Maisie Williams was running late to another event (and was trying to eat something before she left), so our time was brief. Though, after Williams left, I spoke to Sudeikis for a bit longer – specifically about two of his most popular SNL sketches (and two of this reporter’s favorite SNL sketches). We’re going to save that part of the interview for a separate post because a) it’s pretty long and b) Sudeikis went into so much wonderful detail, it deserves its own post. (Frankly, it belongs in a museum, but its own post will have to suffice.)
In The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (which premiered Thursday night at the Tribeca Film Festival), Sudeikis isn’t playing the cocksure character we’re used to seeing from him. Sudeikis’ Henry is a broken man, still recovering from the death of his wife (played by Jessica Biel, who is also one of the film’s producers). While still grieving, Henry meets Millie (Williams), a New Orleans vagabond of sorts who ran away from an abusive home. Together, they set out on building a raft out of scrap parts. Of course, everyone else thinks they are crazy.
Ahead, Sudeikis and Willaims discuss how they barely know anything about each other’s other work, and Sudeikis discusses why this role is so important to him, even though it wasn’t a conscious effort to play a “different” type of character.
This is a fun pairing in this movie with you two.
Sudeikis: Well, thanks.
It should continue. It can be like Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor.
Sudeikis: Sure, yeah. Happily, yeah.
Had you two met before?
Sudeikis: We had never met. And I’ll speak for Maisie, only because I know the answer and she is chewing. Maisie had seen We’re the Millers, with her friend Will Poulter, who played my fake son in that movie. A guy I love dearly. But, I had never seen Game of Thrones…
Really?
Sudeikis: Yeah, yeah. And I still haven’t. And by the time Maisie was attached to it, by that point I wasn’t going to watch it. Only because I want to know her as Millie. If I’ve gotten this far…
But now you could watch Game of Thrones.
Sudeikis: Now I could.
You have a lot of catching up to do.
Sudeikis: I know.
Williams: Yeah, we filmed this a year ago, but here we are.
Sudeikis: Still, it doesn’t matter. Nope. I still need to wait until the movie comes out. We’ll see. Not until the movie is on DVD. When the Blu-ray comes out, then HBO Go, here I come.
Williams: [Laughing] Okay.
Sudeikis: No, I’m going to download it all illegally. I’m going to BitTorrent the whole thing. I’m going to learn BitTorrent and download it. I’m going to buy a laptop, the whole bit.
You saw We’re the Millers, but did you know Jason at all from SNL?
Williams: No. I feel like I approached it in the same way. Where I’m like, “Okay, I know this guy, but…” I was happy to take him as I meet him and our relationship, as it grows that way. It’s like how you would learn about any other person. It’s just so happens you do interviews and actors open themselves up to the world. But, it’s nice to still meet people as organically as you can, just like you would meet a stranger in the street.
It sounds better that Jason’s never seen Game of Thrones. He’s not asking you for spoilers.
Williams: Right! Exactly! It’s just two people who are doing this movie together and your relationship grows and it’s very, very natural.
Sudeikis: I get to stand and sit next to you a lot of the times when people ask those things.
Williams: Right!
You should answer for her. People don’t know you haven’t seen it and they probably think you have scoops.
Sudeikis: That’s true. Yeah, exactly. “Oh boy. Yeah, okay, I’ll tell you.” And then they’ll write it up and, “got you!”
Jason usually plays very confident characters. This is very different. Was that by design?
Sudeikis: Well, I read it in 2009, so at that point I think I had only done a couple of movies. So, I was flattered by that because I just love the story. So, when they come out and how they come about, we have very little control at this point. Some people higher up the mountain – your Robert Downey Jr. and your Will Smith, you know, people like that – they probably have more control over that. I don’t. So, you just sort of do it.
You should just declare, “I have as much power as Robert Downey Jr.”
Sudeikis: [Laughs] And that’s how you get it, right? I’ll remember that.
“I see myself on the same level as Robert Downey Jr.”
Sudeikis: I’d love to. My checking account would disagree. So, for me, it’s just I loved the story and Henry broke my heart every time. Every time from 2009 when I initially read it, to the couple of times it almost happened throughout the process, until it did happen, I’d reread it and it would make me cry at the same times and the same places. And it was always, “Henry, this poor guy,” and it would break my heart. So, as far as being confident and all that stuff, I get what you’re throwing down there, but it wasn’t a conscious effort from me.
You do seem to play a lot of guys who know what’s going on. The ringleader, if you will.
Sudeikis: A little bit, yeah, even if it’s a façade –in real life and otherwise. But, this guy, yeah, it wasn’t woven into a large tapestry that will be known at some point, hopefully, maybe as a career.
But I can see an arc developing…
Sudeikis: Sure, yeah. So hopefully, maybe at some point this is on the way up into something that I, or you, or anybody that reads this website would notice. Because that would be more fun for me, to not know what’s going to happen next.
And Maisie is playing a pretty confident character, but it’s still different. She isn’t killing people…
Williams: [Laughs] Right.
At least that we know of…
Williams: [Laughs] Of course. But I think the differences between Arya and Millie is that she’s been though with that and has come out the other end of this as the product of the history that she’s had in her life. And she’s definitely become this quite kooky little girl, but that’s all she’s kind of ever known. I think she’s definitely very, very strong, but she doesn’t see herself as very strong. She’s not had that reassurance, I guess. She hasn’t had anyone to say, “Hey, you’re doing good, kid.” Then there’s this whole journey she goes on personally where all her wounds get opened up again and she really comes to terms with how much she’s hurting and how not okay she’s doing on her own.
Mike Ryan lives in New York City and has written for The Huffington Post, Wired, Vanity Fair and New York magazine. He is senior entertainment writer at Uproxx. You can contact him directly on Twitter.
