FILM INTERVIEW: BRADLEY COOPER

Taking Drugs to Gain Super Human Abilities in 'Limitless'

By: Emmanuel Itier

March 16, 2011

Bradley Cooper, best known for his role in The Hangover, sat down with Buzzine to discuss his new thriller, Limitless.  He tells us about his goal of directing and whether or not he would want to work with Charlie Sheen.  

Emmanuel Itier: What grabbed you about this character?

Bradley Cooper: I liked a guy who goes from complacency to power. And then what he does with that power--that's cool. And what was this guy up to. But I liked playing the old Eddie, and I would lament the days when the wig wasn't there! [He becomes a Wall Street suit.]

EI: If you could take a pill like that which would make your powers limitless, would you still have become an actor?

BC: I've obviously thought about this. I think for sure I would definitely try to learn as many languages as I could right away. And I would probably, after that, much like he did, learn as many instruments as I could. And after that, I don't know, but I would probably try to get as much money as I could to go around everywhere. But it would be incredible to just start jamming with all these musicians. I don't know what I would do after that, but I would still be an actor! And a director. I would finally start getting off my ass and face the fear, because all I really want to do is direct movies. I just haven't done it!

EI: What turned you on most about this movie?

BC: I enjoyed the aspect of the drug. I tend to speak very fast, so I loved all these succinct paragraphs that just come out that I had to memorize and speak, and I loved doing that. I loved that experience.

EI: Would any kind of enhancement drug like that be anything you'd be interested in taking?

BC: Yes!

EI: How do you feel about the real stuff available to kids, like Adderall and Ritalin?

BC: Oh, that I don't know anything about. But this movie is what it is. I didn't set out to do that as an actor. I found this to be a compelling story about power, how you use it and treat it with respect, and what you do with power much more than about drugs. I didn't really answer that, but I think I did! I'll think about it!

EI: Your character turns into a cleanliness freak after taking the drug. Are you a cleanliness freak like him?

BC: Environment is huge for me, but sometimes I like being in complete chaos and sometimes I like it to be clean. But it's not one thing all the time.

EI: Do you get the same adrenaline rush from acting as you would from a drug like that?

BC: Obviously not on the drug! No, I'm not on NZT right now! But acting does feel like I'm on a drug. But on NZT, I wasn't high, I wasn't wired. I just knew how to do it. And the ability to focus, almost laser focus, in all these different directions at the same time. But the nuggets of truth is love. I have to love something in order to have it mean something to me.

EI: With Hangover, you suddenly became a sex symbol. How are you feeling about that?

BC: With a lucrative movie like that comes a higher profile. So you have the paparazzi--that was a new thing for me. And you just have to learn to navigate that. The great part is that I was able to do a movie like Limitless.  And maybe I wouldn't have been hired to do it if I hadn't been a part of Hangover, which was so successful.

EI: Is it true that you once wanted to be a chef instead?

BC: Yes! I love cooking but was more interested to play a chef than to be a chef! So I think that told me early on that acting was the way I wanted to go.

EI: That should come in handy with your wedding.

BC: That's very true, yeah...

EI: There are rumors that you'll be working with Charlie Sheen on Hangover 2. Confirm or deny?

BC: Unless they have a time machine and we can go back to Bangkok, my understanding is that we already filmed that movie! So that's an interesting rumor to start spreading. You'd have to be part of the Starship Enterprise in order to make that happen!

EI: Would you want to work with him?

BC: Yeah, sure.

EI: Did you ever feel down and out like Eddie does at the beginning of the movie?

BC: Sure. Oh, absolutely. As a human being, yeah, sure. If anybody is in touch with themselves... I mean, do you feel worthless at points in your life and things aren't happening the way you want them to? Yeah, sure.

EI: Has that happened to you at times in your career?

BC: Oh, of course.

Relativity Media/Rogue Pictures' 'Limitless' is released on March 18, 2011.