 "Photo: Allmoviephoto.com")
Two celebrities, one five-star hotel, and three reporters at a round table, all this during my first time interviewing celebrities: It was a whirlwind experience. I had the pleasure of meeting Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried in person and shared my interview time with two other young, excited reporters. We interviewed Seyfried and Tatum separately for about 15 minutes each.
We started out with Seyfried; she was wearing a sparkly golden-copper cardigan with a bright pinkish-red top, tight dark wash jeans and studded boots. She had just finished eating pizza, and at that moment was knitting a brown multicolored hat for a friend. Throughout the entire interview, she rolled and unrolled the yarn she was knitting with her index finger. She is a very petite and radiant person, in no way like the ditzy character she portrays in Mean Girls. When Channing Tatum came in after her, she playfully told him not to touch what she was knitting, but then just decided to bring it with her to the interview.
Channing Tatum wore his hair longer than usual and slicked back, not his best look. He wore a dark gray leather jacket with a black tee and pants. Sorry to disappoint the ladies, but he had his wedding ring on. Tatum is married to his co-star from Step Up, Jenna Dewan. Both Seyfried and Tatum were very down-to-earth and easy to talk to. I could have asked them more questions specifically about the movie, but I figured the same exact questions would probably be asked by another reporter from another publication, and they would receive the same answer. The answers to those sort of questions never tend to be that interesting anyway.
The Phoenix: Dear John was filmed in and around the Charleston, S.C., area.What were some things you liked to do when you were not filming?
Amanda Seyfried: I would go horseback riding every Sunday, because I always needed to train for the role. I kept that up for the whole time. Going horseback riding for three hours in the forest every Sunday is one of the best things I have ever done for myself. The connection you have with the hors — you trust it, it trusts you and it’s a beautiful thing. It is such a therapy for helping kids. Also I had a piano in the house that I lived in, and I would play piano every night after work and play guitar. My favorite musician, Willy Mason — whom you haven’t heard of — he’s really talented, I had a really big crush on him, and I had this great house in Charleston, and since the first day I tried to get in touch with him, and I did. So he drove down and we hung out and he played at my birthday party and we just chilled. It was one of the best moments of my life actually, that birthday. Sorry, if you really like somebody you should definitely go and try to connect, because it’s really, really special. I wish I could go back. I mean, Charleston is so romantic. I did so much in Charleston it’s ridiculous. It’s really sad; I want to make another movie. I want to make another sequel just to go back there.
Channing Tatum: You hang out really, you know, it’s a small-town. There’s life there; you go hang out at bars or go shopping, walk around. We would go to restaurants; we went out to eat a lot, [there are] so many good restaurants down there. The food, the people and just the energy and the sensibility down there, it’s really nice for me. I am not a New-York-state-of-mind kind of guy.
Ph: Valentine’s Day is coming up. What is the best gift you have ever given or received?
AS: The best gift I ever got was a song written about me that was pretty awesome. Also, for me the most romantic thing I do is knit things for people, like this hat for an old friend whose birthday is tomorrow. The most romantic things are handmade creations because it’s sentimental.
CT: A Valentine’s Day gift? That’s a good one, I am trying to remember all of mine. This is not a Valentine’s Day gift, but my high school sweetheart, she made me a quilt, and it’s one of the more thoughtful, time-consuming things I have gotten for sure.
Ph: Besides Channing Tatum, who is your dream romantic co-star?
AS: Dream romantic co-star? Matt Damon. That would be amazing, I think Matt Damon is so good. Matt Damon, I know he is older, but that would be really cool.
Ph: Channing, you went to military school for high school, correct?
CT: Not true, and it is not your fault because it’s out there and I don’t know how to get it back. I think I said I had the choice between military school and private school and somehow they think I said military school. I don’t know how to change it, I cannot get it back.
Ph: You are often in very physically demanding roles like She’s the Man, Step Up, GI Joe: Rise of the Cobra and now Dear John. How do you prepare for these roles?
CT: Nothing specific, just run. You can probably tell I am not anywhere near as fit as I am onscreen. I really want people to know that. It is a thing you do for a movie, you know? I like food, and I don’t like working out, just like everyone else. I enjoy running, and if you want a good book read, Born to Run, it’s a really, really great book and it will inspire you to run. And then diet, I am probably going to have a Kobe Beef Cheeseburger in a minute so it’s really specific. So if you want — if you feel like you are not exactly where you want to be, weight-wise or shape-wise, you know, it’s your decision. I do a lot of sports. Actually, my sport was football. But, I don’t know, I love being physical, the physicality and moving. I always had a good relationship with my motion and my body. I don’t know,I have been blessed with good genes. I really enjoy that, in being a physical person. So I think I try to put something in, whether it be the way I walk or something.
After our 15 minutes were up with Channing Tatum, I asked for a picture with him, and will now forever have proof that we met. Next thing I knew I was going down the elevator, and was back outside in the real world where you can’t just park your black Bentley and know that a valet will take good care of it.
1 comments