FILM INTERVIEW: TRACI LORDS

Back To The (Porn) Future For Traci Lords With Kevin Smith (Kinda)

Traci Lords became almost as famous for being an ex-teenage porn star as she was being one, espcially when it emerged that she had been underage for all of her films, except the last. And then in turned out that the only one that she owned was also the last. Smart woman. She then became one of the very first X-rated actresses to successfully cross over into the world of 'normal' film and televison wtith roles in John Waters' Cry Baby, Roseanne, Melrose Place, Blade and Tommyknockers. Add in a well-received music album and you have a compelling portrait of an artist reborn. Which made her decision to join the cast of Kevin Smith's new movie Zack and Miri Make A Porno, all the more surprising...and that is before you find out that she had just given birth to her first child when Kevin called her up...

 

Izumi Hasegawa: You had just given birth to your son when you took this movie?

 

Traci Lords: He was three months, and is a year as of last week. It was his birthday last week.

 

IH: You really must have wanted to work with Kevin Smith!

 

TL: I took the baby, threw him in the bag, and went...

 

No, actually, I wasn’t thinking that I was going to go back to work that soon. I wasn’t looking. I mean, you’re always looking, in that things come in and you read things, and I was a huge fan of Kevin’s. The idea for the film came up, the script, and I was horrified by the title of it. I thought, “No, thank you.”

 

I had this newborn as well, and my agent and manager, who I’ve been with forever, for the last 15 or 16 years said, “No, you have to go and meet him. Take a look at the script.” I always wanted to meet him just because I think he makes amazing movies, and so I went and sat in his living room and read his script. It made me laugh out loud and I thought, “Oh, no. Now what am I going to do? I like it. It’s funny, but it’s freezing in Pittsburgh and I’m breastfeeding. How is this going to work?” It just seemed like, in that moment, it all came full circle for me. I was a new mom, I had this beautiful baby and have this amazing relationship with my husband who’s willing to take off with me… My husband is an ironworker.

 

I thought, “We’ll go back to Pittsburgh and make this movie. It’s been two decades since I was a teenage porn star, and maybe it’s a bookend.” I thought maybe it was a way to say, “Okay. I’ve done enough so that I can laugh now.”

 

IH: What did you like about the script?

 

TL: I liked that the core of it is a love story and that it’s about two people struggling. I think it’s really timely right now in the desperation, and these people can’t pay their power bill and what are they going to do — all that stuff. I thought it was funny. I thought that backdrop was obviously outrageous. How often do you get asked to play a character named Bubbles that has that kind of extreme control? I’m hoping that you’re not going to ask me to do that here.

 

IH: To pick a porn name, they say that you have to pick the street name that you grew up on and your first pet’s name.

 

TL: Yes, I’m Fluffy Vanderbilt, thank you very much.

 

IH: What were some of the inspirations of Bubbles?

 

TL: I really didn’t have to do a lot with Bubbles. Kevin and I agreed on the fact that she should just be very, very deadpan — really, really dry. My take on it was that I’d been popping out of birthday cakes since I was 18. I was the best thing going in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and just no one knew it yet. I was out and this was my big chance to show everyone how fabulous I am. She’s the girl that’s getting a little bit older that has the kittens, the competitions, but she’s got a secret weapon — she can blow a bubble. It was just a matter of that and going in and playing, and trusting that they all knew what they were doing. I was really truly among that kind of genius, I think, in Kevin. I think he’s really amazing, and then Seth [Rogen] who’s really funny, and Elizabeth [Banks], who I think is an amazing actress… I think the chemistry was good and the script was there. I was okay with it. I thought, if I went down in flames, I would be in good company.

 

IH: You were a technical advisor on this, but they were making an amateur porn.

 

TL: And they do it really badly, I beg your pardon.

 

IH: The camera is so far away and that kind of thing, but was there advice that you could give at all — dialogue or movements?

 

TL: I have Baby Einstein in my DVD player, and so thankfully no one asked me.

 

IH: Have you done anything special to lose the weight after baby?

 

TL: I think I was lucky. I certainly did my time on the treadmill, my 45 minutes a day. I went to the fitting two months after. He was two months old when this all happened, and I think the sequence about Star Wars and the costume was the first thing that I had to try on, so every time I went to the refrigerator, I got that image in my head and it made me just say no to the cake.

 

IH: I really liked all your costumes.

 

TL: We had this amazing designer on the show, Sal Perez. I think he was so specific about what he saw. He and Kevin and myself all worked together. He just had a really great eye, and Pittsburgh, being so dark and cold at that time of the year, tended to be really grey. He wanted the color to pop in particular with my character, and so I got to wear a lot of the fun stuff. I got to be the candy, so it was a lot of fun.

 

IH: What was it like on set between takes? Was it freezing, or was everyone cracking up?

 

TL: Both. All of it. I was napping. Sleep deprivation. I was just napping.

 

IH: Where did you meet your husband?

 

TL: I actually met my husband 15 years ago and he was laying iron then, and he was moonlighting as a bartender at a close friend’s restaurant. I was working for NBC at the time and I lived right around the corner, and I would go into this little restaurant and grab a drink when I got home from work at whatever hour. He was bartending on the weekends for extra money. I thought that he was amazingly kind and sweet and wore incredible shoes, and so he had to be gay. Any guy that wore Prada shoes back then… metrosexual now, but back then, I didn’t know what that meant. I’m a little naive. We just had this really nice relationship because I felt very safe with him. Over the years, I would complain about my rather awkward love life and he would just listen and listen and listen.

 

IH: Did he know who you were?

 

TL: He knew. He had a huge crush on me and I was completely oblivious. Everyone apparently knew but me. I had a boyfriend for a really long time. I’m a serial monogamist and have been since the post-porn stuff. Over the years, we got to be friends, and then, when I was single, we started dating and got married, and it’s been seven long years... I’m kidding [laughs]

 

IH: Now you’ve got a baby and a husband. It’s the whole American dream thing going on.

 

TL: Are you trying to ruin my reputation? How dare you?

 

IH: Is that something that you always wanted to have?

 

TL: Absolutely, yeah. I think that every little girl wants that. It’s the putting your dolls in the stroller and ‘Cinderella,’ and the guy on the white horse — the whole thing. I also do think that’s a lot to feed little girls. You grow up thinking that you’re supposed to do this or that, you need a man to do this or that, so there are two sides to that. You don’t necessarily want to raise your children thinking that you’ve got to have this, but I think there’s also a tremendous value to having that. I’m so grateful that I have a baby and I have a husband, and I have a great relationship. I have a sister that’s a single mom and I know how hard it is for her. I know how hard that is for a lot of women.

 

IH: Has having your baby made you think differently about the things that you want to do in terms of films?

 

TL: I think that age has changed, certainly — the way that I look at everything that I do and now having a son, I really think about it because it matters. I find myself more drawn to animation. I did actually do the voice for Baby Einstein because I’m doing more and more voiceover. I’m really attracted to Disney films. I don’t think I’ll be doing any anytime soon. You never know who might read this. I’m open. [Laughs]

 

IH: What are you working on next?

 

TL: I just finished a film based on a New York Times bestseller called I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, which I think is kind of funny because my IMDB will read Zack and Miri Make a Porno and then I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, so there’s a little bit of humor there. It’s a comedy and really, really funny. Tucker Max wrote it and it’ll be out in the early part of next year.

 

I’m really grateful to be doing good comedy. There’s a shortage, especially in such serious times. It’s good to be doing things that make people laugh. It’s really great. One of my dream projects, that I’m working on right now, is that I’ve wanted to work with Zalman King who did Nine 1/2 Weeks. I had a really sexy vibe about him and we’re working on a project called The Art of Seduction right now that’s a talk show. It’s basically about how to put the zest back into your life, your marriage, or your relationship, or your whatever. It’s kind of like a lubricant for the mind, keeping people together, and playing. It’s been a lot of fun to do that. We don’t know where it’s going to end up right now. We shot the pilot two weeks ago, and they’re editing it and putting it together.

 

There are several places that are interested in it. The reason that it’s sort of a dream for me is that I love to talk to people, and I think that I’m good at this part of it and it’s been a lot of fun to play with, and now, as a mom, I get to talk to a lot of women, which has been a cool thing.

 

IH: Were you at all concerned about the public reaction to the title of this film, or were you expecting it?

 

TL: I was completely expecting it. I think that any time you have a word like “porno” in a title, it’ll raise an eyebrow or two, so that doesn’t surprise me at all.

 

IH: The industry is a lot more mainstream now, though, and there seems to be more of a cultural acceptance. What are your thoughts about something like Jenna Jameson transitioning into mainstream work?

 

TL: I don’t know. The thing is that I have Disney in my DVD player. I can tell you that I’m aware of the controversy surrounding the title and all of that, and I understand people’s concerns with it, and I think that certain things are appropriate in certain areas and some maybe not so much. I’m just hoping that we’ll do as well as Beverly Hills Chihuahua.

 

IH: Did Kevin tell you why he wanted you?

 

TL: Yeah, he said something about “You’re a goddess and I worship you. Please do my film.”

 

IH: Do you think that, with the controversy, people will miss the romantic core of the film?

 

TL: I don’t know. What did you think? Did the romance surprise you?

 

IH: It was more romantic than I expected.

 

TL: Did you expect it to be raunchier?

 

IH: No, the title is so frank.

 

TL: I think you’re right. The thing that really hit me, when I first read the script and with the script — it was there on the page, what you see. There was a lot of improv later, and on the DVD extras you’ll probably see more of that, but the script was what it is. It really was. Even in reading the script, you could see that the core of it was set in this world that was maybe a titillating subject or what-have-you, but it was really about these two people who fell in love, and so I knew it was really important who they cast and whether you bought them falling in love.

 

I think that Seth and Elizabeth really pulled that off, and Kevin set it up really well. So I was charmed by it, and one of the things that I thought really boosted the whole thing was the music. I love the music in it. I think the fact that they went with something so light and poppy and fun is great. To me, when I think of the movie, I think about pop art. That’s what it reminds me of.

 

IH: Was there a lot of improvisation in the film?

 

TL: Yeah, not that made it into the film necessarily. The film ran really long, and so I think you’ll see a lot of that in the DVD extras. You’ll see a lot of the adlibs and those things. We had a lot of fun just adding things here and there.

 

IH: Can you talk about the evolution of your perspective from your teenage body of work and through the years, and how you view that body of work now?

 

TL: My perception of it? Hmm. It’s something that I did when I was a really young person. I started in it when I was 15 and was done by the time that I was 18. Looking at that now, I realize that I wasn’t mature enough to make a decision that had that much gravity. I think that’s the thing that really sticks with me. I think it’s nice to be in a position where I’m in now, where my life has been so accomplished in so many ways. I think I’ve been really lucky and I’m grateful for the way that it’s turned out.

 

IH: If you could make a porno with any celebrity who would it be?

 

TL: I think I’d pass. Thanks, though.

 

IH: I thought the way the movie portrays men and women’s view on sex was interesting.

 

TL: It’s that whole Venus and Mars thing. I’m curious to see what the audiences are going to think. I’m wondering if women will see the movie or will be afraid of the word “porno” in the title. I’m hoping that word of mouth, no pun intended, will carry it. People are going to like it. They’re not going to like it. They’re going to be titillated. They’re not going to be. I think that Kevin said early on, in one interview, that if you get turned on by this movie, you need to check yourself a little.

 

IH: I think women will like the love story in the middle. I thought it was cool.

 

TL: Yeah, Jason Mewes was the body in it. Jason and little Katie [Morgan].

 

IH: Were you a fan of Kevin’s movies?

 

TL: Yeah, Chasing Amy. He’s got that thing that he likes to do — that whole chasing love, just the hunt of it. We were talking earlier about Kevin and Seth being geeks and I said, “Yeah, there were the geeks and the goddesses. Depending on the day, you were on one side or the other.” Jason was usually on both sides.

 

IH: What’s your advice to any couple who might be down on their luck and thinking of making a video?

 

TL: That whole iChat porn thing is kind of scary. Light it well. Say no to the cake.

 

IH: There seems to be more couples going online and putting it all out there.

 

TL: I find that terrifying.

 

'Zack And Miri Make A Porno' is in theaters now from The Weinstein Company.