Interview: Martin Henderson Talk About "Torque" Posted on Wed, 21-Jan-2004
He's been a well-known face in both his native New Zealand and Australia for quite a few years, but his role in the new Hollywood blockbuster Torque is sure to have everyone quite aware of the name, the man and the talent that is Martin Henderson.
How’s it feel headlining this big-time Hollywood movie?
Strange man, just bizarre. For me it was always a dream to go to Hollywood and make Hollywood movies. But whatever it is you want to achieve in life - the journey that you take in order to get there - when you finally get to that thing, the goal post’s are somewhere else. But It’s wonderful to come back here – since I did all my work in New Zealand and Australia, before going to America – and people are being really supportive.
Did you leave for America after [TV Series] Big Sky?
Yeah, it was just after a film I did named Kick. I actually left Big Sky to do that. I sort of made my decision to go a while before that. I always knew I wanted to go to Hollywood it was just always about getting the timing right. I went to New York first and studied theatre first – took a break from the whole business side of it before going to L.A
How long did it take you to crack a role?
In Los Angeles? About a year.
Windtalkers was it?
No, actually I did a pilot, playing an Australian cameraman. It was an ABC pilot. Which was good, because I was so desperate at that point, I had zero money. I borrowed money from my manager to get petrol in my car to get to the audition, but it worked out. It gave me a little bit of money and a VISA to stay in the Country and then Windtalkers and again a little bit more money and another VISA – so you’d get breathing space.
And the next one was The Ring wasn’t it?
Yeah, yeah.
You’ve done well. Now you’re headlining a movie!
Yeah. The end result seems so wonderful and great, but the lead up to it is so gruelling.
Did the body of work you’d done in Australia mean anything when you got over there?
It meant something to the agents. In some ways I was quite fortunate that I found it so easy to get an agent. I proved that I was employable, so they were like ‘Sure, we’ll represent ya kid – do it in American and we’ll be happy to’. So, um, yeah, in some respects it did, and on a confidence level it helped too, meaning I could carry myself in auditions and didn’t come across as some kid just off the greyhound from Ohio. Confidence wise, it was good.
I hear you’re lucky to be here. Didn’t you punch Ice Cube in the face ?
It’s true. Little white boy punched Ice Cube in the face. He’s a pretty cool guy and he didn’t want to do the rehearsals for the fight, he stood and watched me do it with one of the stunt guys and learn what his part was and then he joined my for the first run through and, ah, unfortunately we weren’t filming – it must’ve been like final rehearsal – because it would’ve been great to have that on camera and he got too close to me. We weren’t on our lines…I just turned straight around and clocked him. And I did clock him. [Laughs] So it was just one of those awful accidents – I was like, oh my god, I just punched Ice Cube in the face! I think he could tell by how wide my eyes were that it was an accident that I was just as shocked as he was. He was cool; he was just like ‘Don’t get that close’.
Were you up against any ‘bigger’ names for the lead role?
I don’t know. I was actually in Denmark doing a film, a Danish Independent Film, while they were casting this thing and my agent said it was an interesting part. I read it, and I wasn’t that interested at first. Maybe that’s why they were interested in me. The script read very definitely to the final film, a lot of it ended up being sort of tongue in cheek and that was the director’s doing. I was asked to come to L.A and do an audition on tape, so I was like ‘Oh, Ok, alright, fine’ so I literally flew in to LA for a day. Before the audition I rang in and told the director ‘Just so you know, I don’t see the character as not so one dimensional’. He was written very much Clint Eastwood like, very ‘get out of my way’, almost like the Henry character. I don’t want to do that. I thought it should’ve been a bit more fun, a bit more tongue-in-cheek. The director said ‘Great, I totally agree, that’s fantastic – I want that movie to have that kind of feel.’
Now that you’ve got an in with the studio [Warner] have they asked you to test for Superman yet?
For Superman? [Smiles] Ah, Ah, we’ll see….we’re talking about it. We’ll see.
Oh?
I might want to do something a little more…different. For now.
So what do you think of working with green screens and all that?
I don’t mind it, because we did a lot of that with Big Sky – the plane stuff. When we were flying the plane, and of course they would put out whatever’s out the window. It was a good training ground actually when I think about it. Pure, Pure acting – all complete imagination, nothing around you, so you’re just pretending. It’s all creative imagination, its make-believe. I don’t mind it – it’s good fun. If you take it too seriously – it can get fearful. And that’s why I love this movie [Torque], it doesn’t take itself too seriously and that’s why I started acting not to do Henry V or anything like that it was just to have a good time.
But you’d like to do something in a different genre?
Something not so…I don’t want to say…commercial, because I want everyone to go and see my movies.
Well Bride and Prejudice is about as far away from Torque as you can get
Yeah, well that was sort of my reason for doing it. You read so many scripts and this was about 180 degrees away from anything. I like that. It’s not trying to be anything.
And we won’t see you in The Ring sequel?
No. Sadly, no. Because that was fun. I enjoyed that – working with Naomi, very cool.
I imagine you had known Naomi for a long time before that?
No I didn’t know. I’d never met her. Never heard of her – nothing. Not besides Mulholland Drive and then I thought ‘wow, she’s good’. No, wasn’t until the first day of rehearsal…
But you’d known Heath [Ledger] for a long time?
Yeah, long time. But they hadn’t met each other then though. They met when she did Ned Kelly, which was about six months later.
And did you hook up with Heath when you went to the states?
I went to New York, and he went to L.A and then I finally got a job and moved to L.A. It was just when he got The Patriot.
What’s next for you then?
Well, I was supposed to be doing this thing with Cate Blanchett next month here called Little Fish, and she got pregnant. So basically when she’s recovered and ready from that we’re probably going to do it in October.
Looking forward to coming back and working in Australia?
I love a lot about America but it’s very different and when you’re from here it never quite fits in the same way. It’ll be nice to do an Australian character too.
And I hear you’re signed for the Torque sequel?
Torque 2? Yeah, I think I am. It was part of the deal. I am really proud of this movie. It will be interesting to see how many people get it, especially in America – they just don’t take the piss. This movie takes the piss of the genre, it doesn’t take anything seriously. There’s a whole other mentality to this. So I hope the audience get it, its fun. And I had a lot of fun making it so if we get to make another one I’d be ready to sign up in a heartbeat. It’s all about the money…
What happened on Sharon Osbourne’s show? I heard she went for gropes?
[Hysterical Laughter] Oh my god, yeah. Someone should have warned me about that. She was feeling a little frisky that day.
Who did you play in Home and Away?
I can’t even remember my characters name but I was the love interest of Shannon, Isla Fisher’s character. I was in the Navy…some crazy thing…Mandy was my sister. I don’t even know. I never even watched it. They were like ‘You’re Mandy’s brother’, and I was like ‘Am I?’ [Laughs]
