‘Hollywood actors are misunderstood’

For Brian Cox, an actor’s job is to reflect the truth. The X-Men star, however, feels people don’t really understand actors. “People don’t really understand actors very much. I constantly find that actors are misunderstood,” Cox, 73, said. 

“People think that actors do some kind of magic. I’d go back to William Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ quote, ‘twere, the mirror up to nature’ to describe my job as an actor,” he added.

Cox says he finds the journey of exploring human experiences through his work fascinating. 

“My job is to tell the truth about situations, about why people come to be what they are. That is endlessly fascinating. It gets more fascinating at my age,” he pointed out.

Cox feels it gets better with age. “I’m in my seventies now and I am still fascinated with trying to understand what the human experience is, and why. Why did we invent all these religions? What does it reflect on our life experiences? What is humanity and what are we as human beings? 

“This is what I enjoy about my job. I am always given another insight (through my projects) into how human beings operate. It is fascinating and endlessly interesting.” 

Grand career

Starting his career in theatre, Cox has carved a place for himself with power-packed performances as the anti-mutant villain William Stryker in the “X-Men” movies, the villainous opportunist King Agamemnon in “Troy”, CIA Deputy Director Ward Abbott in the Bourne franchise and Winston Churchill in Churchill. 

At present, Cox, who started working in the sixties, is seen as media mogul Logan Roy in the show “Succession”, aired in India on Star World. 

The Scottish actor finds flaws charming, and roles dipped in hues of grey attractive. 

“Most human beings have flaws. That is a human condition. I don’t know anybody who is perfect,” the actor said. 

Up next

In a seamless way, Cox connects it with his present role of Logan in Succession, which follows the lives of the Roy family as they contemplate their future once their aging father (essayed by Cox) begins to step back from his media and entertainment conglomerate. 

—IANS