The truth is, David Duchovny, 37, is nearing the end of his five-year "X-Files"
sentence, er, contract. He's dog-tired of being Mulder, and he'd like some
new challenges, please. Which is why he took the role of the anti-Mulder,
Dr. Eugene Sands, in the '90s noir film Playing God, with Timothy
Hutton (looking eerily like Stephen Dorff's older brother) and Angelina Jolie
(daughter of Jon Voight). Duchovny's character is a hapless, hopeless doctor
suspended from practicing medicine because of drug addiction, who ends up
becoming a surgeon to a mob of very stylish but lethal L.A. gangsters and
falling in love with the leader's moll.
Duchovny was born and raised in New York City. He's intensely well read and
possibly terminally educated, an alumnus of Princeton, with a master's in
English lit from Yale. He's no stranger to film, having appeared in Working
Girl (1988), The Rapture (1991), Chaplin (1992) and
Kalifornia (1993). And he's fresh from shooting the big-screen
X-Files movie, due out next year.
In this interview, a surprisingly honest and shockingly funny Duchovny speaks
out on drugs, ice cream, "The X-Files" as a religion, acting, the location
of the soul, marriage, kids, his new bride (actress Téa Leoni, star of TV's
"The Naked Truth"), peeling people's faces off and the possibility of seeing
his naked ass next year on the big screen. Now that's worth the price
of admission.
Cinemania: When did
you shoot Playing God?
David Duchovny: We
shot it a year ago, and they've just been holding on to it because it's kinda
neither fish nor fowl. They didn't know when to bring it out. It wasn't a
summer movie, so I think they are waiting for this lull. I looked at the
paper this morning and there's no huge ones out right now.
Cinemania: It's a
wild ride. And it's got a lot of blood!
David Duchovny: Yeah
[laughs]. The reason I wanted to do the movie was because it was an interesting
character and an interesting story. So I hope that still exists in the film.
That kind of stuff kinda got away from me while we were making it because
it turned into this wild ride you're talking about and less of a character
piece. But I think in the end, the director was right to make it the show
that it is, because if I'd had my way it would have turned into a melodrama.
A TV movie of the week, like "Dr. MacGyver." It's always better when someone
else takes the movie away from you because then you can blame them if it
goes bad and take credit if it turns out well.
Cinemania: Your character
in the film "has made a bad choice." But it seems like being addicted to
drugs is a series of bad choices.
David Duchovny: When
I was researching the character, I talked to a doctor who specialized in
doctors with drug problems. It was interesting, because he said if you were
good at it, you could probably get away with it for 10 to 15 years before
anyone caught you — maybe forever. If you're "polypharmaceutical," you
get a little up and then bring it back down to find your comfort zone. That
was interesting because doctors, being competitive by nature, probably see
it as a competition within themselves: How long can I get away with
this?
Also, it's like your ice cream. Even I, as an actor, get to the point where
I work 14 hours a day, and you wonder: When do you get to have your ice cream?
Not money or fame, which people think of as being wonderful, but when you
get home at 3 a.m. after working all day, you want your ice cream. Or something.
And I think surgeons, because they are putting out so much, can start to
feel sorry for themselves in the same way. "I'm giving, I'm giving, now where's
my pleasure?" Drugs can feel good that way. So I think there was a little
bit of that I relate to.
And there's the high-wire act: "It's a secret, and I'm so good at it that
no one is going to be able to tell." And also the other actor-doctor parallel
that was easy to follow was [the feeling] that you don't really belong there:
You're afraid, and every time you go in there to save someone's life —
to possibly lose someone's life or fuck it up forever — you have
to ask yourself, "Am I for real? Do I know how to do this? Am I the impostor?"
Cinemania: Which
is something everyone feels, no matter what their job. But for doctors it
must be worse. You observed operations to prepare for the role. Was it
queasy-making?
David Duchovny: Not
the blood. I'll tell you about the impressions I came away with: the color
of the skin of the patients — it's so, kind of, green in there, I think
because of the lighting and circulation and the coldness of the operating
room. They look dead already, and that was disconcerting.
I watched a man with a tumor in a gland in the front of the brain behind
the nasal cavity. I was told I was going to watch a brain surgery and I thought
it would be like a cartoon where they get the saw out and go, pop! And they
scoop out the brain. They wanted me to talk to them, which is like talking
to the airplane pilot. When you're up there with a pilot, you want to ask
questions, but it's like "Why don't you concentrate on what you're doing?"
The neat thing about doctors is they have this wonderment in the face of
anatomy and its efficiency. These guys were like, "The great thing is we
have this hole here in the head, so we don't even have to make a hole. So
what we're going to do is pull his face up and go in the nose cavity. Here's
a hole. Let's go in there." So they cut his face off and lifted it off. This
was before the movie [Face/Off] came out. … Of all things I saw,
the pulling off of the face was the hardest because it was so dehumanizing.
Drilling a hole in a head is not as bad. I was talking to a friend who had
a Caesarean section [who said] they take your intestines out and put them
on your chest.
Cinemania: I hope
they put them back and arrange them properly.
David Duchovny: Large
intestine, small intestine. "Yeah, that looks fine. It'll settle. Just go
for a jog tomorrow." Surgeons are kinda like mechanics, which is a wonderful
thing. I mean, our idea that our bodies are more than a body is an illusion
we like to tell ourselves. I'm not saying there's not a soul or anything,
but it's not in the body.
Cinemania: You haven't
made a movie in a while.
David Duchovny: I
haven't had time. It takes a lot of time to make that show. Ten months a
year. After the first year I was just exhausted because I had never experienced
anything like that. I thought I was gonna die, so I thought I should rest.
And after the second year, things fell through, and I did this movie after
the third year and The X-Files movie after the fourth year.
Cinemania: So you
got it figured out now.
David Duchovny: It's
partly motivated by fear.
Cinemania: That "The
X-Files" is gonna end?
David Duchovny: Oh,
I don't care about "The X-Files" ending. There's no fear there. But it's
the fear of wanting to get work, and then I gotta take work, and I think
that's a good thing, but you have to do the work that satisfies you. This
movie I was satisfied by. The X-Files movie was the same as the show
to me. And it just becomes … you get a little burnt out.
Cinemania: You're
not challenging yourself?
David Duchovny: You're
only challenging yourself in terms of stamina, which is not a very exciting
challenge for other people to watch. [laughs]
Cinemania: Hey, he's
still going! The Energizer Bunny actor!
David Duchovny: Yeah.
"Hey, he did five movies this year, and they were all terrible. Hey, he took
three days off last year. He acted 362 days last year." You just can't act
that much. I don't think it's smart. You gotta regenerate, figure out why
you're acting and what it is you're doing.
Cinemania: You came
to acting late.
David Duchovny: I
started when I was 27.
Cinemania: But you
were busy doing all that other stuff like getting an education. What do you
do with a degree in English literature?
David Duchovny: You
teach. Or you write. And I think that I still feel that I'm a writer. I feel
that I have a career, and there's a lot about acting that's challenging and
fun. But ultimately I want to write.
Cinemania: Raymond
Chandler didn't start writing until he was 45 when his oil business went
bust. And he only wrote seven books in his lifetime.
David Duchovny: Really.
Well, they say you only have one book in you.
Cinemania: And that's
where it should stay.
David Duchovny: [laughs]
Well, it just depends on how many times you feel like writing it.
Cinemania: Hemingway,
all the great writers, certainly wrote the same book over and over again.
But actors also pick roles to explore certain things over and over again.
You've explored this character for a while now.
David Duchovny: Well,
that's television. If I had my choice, I wouldn't do it anymore. It's a contract
and loyalty to the people you got into it with. As an actor, the challenges
are stamina and "Can I do this again? Today?" And there are lots of little
challenges that, if I stay aware and awake, are there.
Cinemania: Do you
ever take a risk with the role and wonder if anyone else notices it?
David Duchovny: Yeah.
I think I'm gonna do that more this year because … I'm sick. I did the
movie, and I was just standing on set the other day, thinking, "I can't believe
I'm here."
Cinemania: It must
be like Groundhog Day, waking up over and over again in the same
place.
David Duchovny: [laughs]
It is! It's like, "Oh, you again!" And there's been a couple of times when
I've had ideas, but they were always unsuccessful. It can't be like "I'm
gonna do the nines tables today in every one of my scenes. In my head." That
would be a challenge. I actually did that in acting class. I remember thinking,
"Well, this character is kind of distracted, I wonder if I did the multiplication
tables in my head … " But then I couldn't remember my lines.
Cinemania: Or the
multiplication tables.
David Duchovny: No
trick is too low — if it works. That's what I love about acting, is
that it's not moral. However you need to get there — who cares? And
if it means you need to have a full bladder or drink 10 cups of coffee —
I don't ask why. If it's up there on screen, that's fine. It's the same with
writing. Shamelessly plugging The X-Files movie.
Cinemania: This season,
will Scully and Mulder get … romantic?
David Duchovny: You
gotta wait for the movie to see that.
Cinemania: It's a
movie, so you have to do everything bigger, right?
David Duchovny: Right:
Bigger hair, bigger clothes. I wore bigger shoes. Everything. It's a big
screen, and you gotta fill it. The amazing, well, the unique thing about
the movie is that it's the culmination of five years of the show. The last
show this season will say, "To be continued…" And that's the movie.
It's shameless.
Cinemania: And "ER"
thought they had a gimmick.
David Duchovny: I
know. It's terrible. If you can get excited about marketing, it's kind of
a cool thing, which is why I did the movie.
Cinemania: God, everyone
is going to go see this movie — all the TV fans.
David Duchovny: I
know. I mean, pride goeth before a fall, but I can't see anyone missing
this.
Cinemania: Everyone
who watched the show will go and people who see the movie will want to see
the show.
David Duchovny: It
should be illegal, I think. It's gotta be like an anti-trust violation. You
shouldn't be able to have a culmination of a free show. … It's like
"Hey, your first shot of heroin is free, buddy. Next 500 are on you."
Cinemania: What was
different about shooting the movie?
David Duchovny: The
pace. It's the same show. People want you to say it's different, but it's
the same, just bigger and louder with other good actors: Martin Landau and
Armin Mueller-Stahl, Blythe Danner and Glenne Headly.
Cinemania: But no
little green men.
David Duchovny: Possibly.
Cinemania: But you
promise you will give some answers in The X-Files movie?
David Duchovny: Oh,
yeah. We'll give answers. For eight bucks, we'll give answers: the Cigarette
Smoking Man. That's what I don't like about the show, that the Cigarette
Smoking Man is responsible for all the evil in the Western world.
Cinemania: So there
will be little green men and romance?
David Duchovny: There's
something very close to romance in the movie.
Cinemania: Any nude
scenes?
David Duchovny: I
think you might see my ass. No, really, we shot my ass, we definitely did,
but I don't know if it will be in the movie. But my ass is on film.
Cinemania: I'll bet
it gets in.
David Duchovny: The
only reason I agreed to show my ass is because it's so extraneous, you can't
believe it. It's almost as bad as if we were driving, and I decided to moon
somebody.
Cinemania: This sounds
like Sharon Stone's scene in Basic Instinct. She didn't think it would
make it in.
David Duchovny: You
believe that? I think Sharon Stone knew. Absolutely. I think it's revisionist
history. It was only when she started becoming a serious actress she said,
"They told me the muff wasn't going to be in." Why show it if it's not going
to be in? Why not wear underwear?
Cinemania: Because
it's method.
David Duchovny: Yeah,
but that's bull. Make believe you don't have underwear. Imagine you're naked.
Act like you're naked. I always wanted to do a close-up without my clothes
and nobody would be able to tell that I was naked. Here I am on a stage,
with a bunch of sweaty grips and craft service nearby and maybe somebody's
parents visiting for the day, a tour group, and there's David doing his close-up.
It would have to be appropriate for the scene, like if you were uptight or
embarrassed or just uncomfortable. So, one of these days … And I'll
let you know what scene it is. "See that? I'm naked the rest of the way
down."
Cinemania: So the
ass scene is totally extraneous to the plot?
David Duchovny: Totally.
It's like "Here's the ass shot." I think that's great, because when they
try to work it in, like "Here's the love scene," I hate that.
Cinemania: Did they
shoot it in slow motion?
David Duchovny: [laughs]
Yeah. You see the ass in a hospital gown, because I get hurt.
Cinemania: But that
makes sense.
David Duchovny: It
makes a little sense that I'm not wearing underwear in a hospital gown. But
that you have to show my ass? My injured ass, nonetheless? Was it Bird
on a Wire where Goldie Hawn takes the bullet out of Mel Gibson's ass?
That was pretty funny. I like those kinds of ass scenes. When there's a bullet
in the ass, you should show the ass.
But I don't know if mine will make it in. Chris [Carter, X-Files creator]
is, like, weighing my ass right now. It's like this: He's got one cheek in
this hand and one in the other going, "I don't know … I don't know …
But he's got a whole year to figure it out. And I'm like, "Show my ass while
it's still nice. If you want to show my ass, let's shoot it early in the
show while I'm still working out and not too tired." These are all stipulations.
Cinemania: Of course.
That's like not doing a bathing suit shot after lunch.
David Duchovny: You
think that makes a difference? Because I've thought a lot about this.
Cinemania: Oh, yeah.
You can't help it. You put stuff in there and it shows.
David Duchovny: You
think? It's like a pillow in a pillowcase? Hmmm. However, I don't think the
ass responds that quickly. [laughs] "Nyah, I don't want to shoot my ass.
I just had a big lunch. It went right to my ass."
But if I can segue way back to the movie, it's all about ice cream. Food
is all about pleasure. Personally, what I like most about food and eating
is the ritual of it. It means that you can take a break. And no one will
let me take a break unless I have a big plate of something in front of me.
The shitty thing about acting is that you're stuck in the cafeteria mode
from grade school. You go up to the truck, and you get your plastic thing,
and when did it happen that I didn't get out of grade school? "May I have
my mashed potatoes?"
Cinemania: Don't
you have someone bring you food to your trailer?
David Duchovny: Nyah.
I don't do that. Can I do that? I'm gonna come back and do that.
Cinemania: So what's
it like being married?
David Duchovny: It's
good. We've been married for like five, six months. It's great. I wish I
could be with her all the time. This will be the last year I work in Vancouver.
Whatever happens with the show will happen; it may move to L.A., or it will
end, but I'll be back here, regardless. And it's really a nice feeling. I'm
37, I hadn't been married, and I like the feeling a lot. And it's very settling.
Like, this is my life, and this is who I come home to, and this is who I
tell the truth to, and all those things are good. And it's a challenge, a
great challenge. For some reason, I wanted to be married. It was weird, because
I'm not traditional in that way, but I knew it was right. Something smacked
me over the head and said, this is it. I think the Machiavellian aspect of
it was that since we're both public, if we date, we'll be in the papers a
lot. But if we get married, people will leave us alone. They'll go crazy
for a while, like a month, but then they'll go, "Well, they got married."
So it was just an announcement that our intentions were serious. And I wanted
to go to the mountain top with the fact that I'm serious.
Cinemania: Do you
guys have a house in L.A.?
David Duchovny: We
just bought a house. It will be ready in, like, 2003. I think we'll move
in then, once Téa gets through with it. I'm the guy who moves in and says
it's fine. She's the guy who needs 10 years to fix it. And that's fine. Because
I'm in Vancouver [B.C., shooting "The X-Files"]. We were just having the
discussion in the car. She said, "So we can rent until next December," and
I said, "What are we doing? I thought we bought a house, not a development
area." But she wants to make it perfect, and she has great ideas. She can
make any room look great. She can do anything. She knit me a hat for my birthday.
A winter hat.
Cinemania: Like a
long beanie?
David Duchovny: I
don't know what it was supposed to be, but it was about this big and then
she realized it was too big for my head so she knitted in ribs.
Cinemania: So it
puckers?
David Duchovny: Yeah,
it's a horrible hat, but I love it. It's white and has a tail with a pompom
and it's lopsided and it's great. I just love the ribs. It's like wearing
a football helmet.
Cinemania: Do you
guys want to have kids? And how many?
David Duchovny: Two?
Cinemania: You should
have a third. You need a spare.
David Duchovny: I'd
like a boy and a girl. Then who knows? Maybe we'll adopt.
Cinemania: Do you
get along with kids?
David Duchovny: Yeah.
I've never had to sacrifice my life for them, the way you do when they're
yours. In a way, your life then becomes secondary. It's tough, especially
when you've lived alone for so long, like I have. But I like kids because
they're honest and they're funny. I like funny things. I talk to them like
they're adults, and they seem to like that. When I was four, I loved it when
adults would say, "So, where do you work?" I loved adults who would treat
me like that. So I usually do that. You just keep talking to them.
I was swimming in Vancouver, and there was a guy with his very young daughter
in the locker room. I was changing, and I wasn't uptight. I thought, "That's
cool." But she's staring at me, and her father says, "What are you doing?"
And she says, "I'm watching that man change." They're just great that way.
