A cting is all about trust. Trust in a vision, trust in a process, and ultimately trust in yourself. The belief that if you truly spend your time dedicated to working on the craft, then the results will follow. This is something that Nicholas Hoult knows all too well.
The British actor has come a long way since making his cinematic debut aged 12 in About A Boy (2002). Now, 23 years on (and a staggering 40 films under his belt), the past year alone has seen him play the lead in Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2 and classic vampire remake, Nosferatu, and as Superman’s ultimate antagonist, Lex Luthor, in this past summer’s standout blockbuster.
But for an actor with such range and experience, it is that constant search for new ways to express creativity that continues to drive him. Here he opens up about his partnership with the luxury Swiss watch brand Jaeger-LeCoultre for its ‘The Hour Before’ campaign, shedding light on the meticulous preparation that goes into his roles and the profound connection between the unseen work and the final performance.
ESQUIRE: Is there a role that you played where the preparation ended up being more beneficial for you in the long-term than the performance?
NICHOLAS HOULT: What I love about acting is that it not only allows me to be continually curious and learn a whole variety of things, but it allows me to challenge myself and gain new skills. So there is something about the prep process about the job that I really love. When I read a script that I like the first feeling is excitement, and then I’ll get a wave of ‘oh, wait, can I do this?’ It’s that aspect of fear an neuroticism that pushes me to work hard and prepare properly—whether that is trying to transform physically, or mentally trying to understand the viewpoint of a character.
ESQ: How does that prep process take shape?
NICHOLAS HOULT: I like to cast a wide net, where the ideas can come from anywhere. I can be jogging, listening to an audio book, or in the shower and its just about letting your imagination loop on an idea that triggers. From there, you start to pull the net in when you begin working through things with the director or writers—in terms of tone or what a particular moment needs. The thing I love about acting is that you have to be very present in the moment. You can do a lot of prep work before hand, but when it comes down to doing the scene, you kind of throw it out the window and just exist in the moments between ‘action’ and ‘cut’. That intense focus of being incredibly present is something that I find very special about acting.
ESQ: On set, do you like the commands ‘action’ and ‘cut’? There are some actors that find them a bit jarring…
NICHOLAS HOULT: It depends. If I’m doing an action movie, there is normally a countdown to begin the scene, and I get a huge adrenaline dump from it. In scenes like that so much is happening around you and the timing of everything is so important. From all the rehearsals I’ll know that on ‘Three’ I need to start walking, and on ‘Two’ I’ll need to look left, and then on ‘One’ there’ll be an explosion or whatever, so it’s all a combination of preparation, rehearsal and timing.
However, on the flip side, I was lucky enough to work with Clint Eastwood recently, and on his non-action film sets he likes to keep things very calm and quiet. He’s not an ‘Action’ or ‘Cut’ guy, so when it’s time to do a scene you’ll just hear his iconic gravelly voice say “whenever you’re ready,” and you just keep going until you might hear him say “that’s enough of that,” or just simply “Stop.” I love that. It is something with me that I’ll carry with me forever.
ESQ: How much of filmmaking is about trust?
NICHOLAS HOULT: Hugely. As an actor, you can look stupid a lot of the time—and you need to be okay with that. Take a swing and if you miss then great, try something else. You need to learn to fail, which is why you look for the guidance of someone who really understands the bigger idea of what is trying to be achieved. It’s important for a director to create a space in which you feel you can try anything in order to ensure you can give them what they need.
ESQ: How sensitive are you to criticism?
NICHOLAS HOULT: It’s always nice when things are well received, and people enjoy or care about what you did—but you have to have your own feelings about something before they get skewed by other people’s opinions. Some of the greatest movies ever made weren’t well received initially, so I try to judge things on my experience I had while making it.
ESQ: What is a risk that you’ve taken in your career that ended up paying dividends?
NICHOLAS HOULT: I enjoy taking risks. I enjoy looking at characters that aren’t obvious for me to play, ones that, ultimately, push me to be a better actor. I find the challenge motivating, whether it’s a lovesick zombie, or a suicidal War Boy, or an Emperor of Russia—I enjoy subverting expectations and challenging myself, hopefully that then challenges the audience a bit too.
ESQ: You’ve been doing this now since you were 12, and the wider public has essentially watched you grow up both on and off screen. Has the fame become easier? Do you still have to compose yourself before stepping onto a Red Carpet event?
NICHOLAS HOULT: It definitely has become easier, simply because the first time I went to a premiere, for About A Boy, it was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life! I remember getting out of the car in [London’s] Leicester Square and Hugh Grant had just arrived too and we were met by so much screaming. As a 12-year-old, it was such an intense experience—my knees were shaking and I was honestly terrified. So, it has definitely got easier! They way I look at it now, is that I try to make it less about me and more about giving attention to the people who have waited in line for hours just to be there.
ESQ: And for several years now you’ve stepped out on those red carpets with a lovely Jaeger-LeCoultre on your wrist…
NICHOLAS HOULT: Absolutely. I’ve always loved mechanical things, which is why I am so drawn to watches, so the relationship I have with Jaeger-LeCoultre has been a very organic one. The care, creativity, quality and dedication they stand for is absolutely aligned with my values, and it helps that I’ve met some good people along the way too.
ESQ: What is a piece of advice you’ve received that has stuck with you?
NICHOLAS HOULT: One that comes to mind is from [Mad Max director] George Miller who told me that before a take, focus on the other person in the scene, observe them and lock into what they are doing. Too often we tend to lost in our own heads worrying about what we need to do or what we haven’t done, but ultimately, if you can put those noises aside and focus on the moment, that tends to benefit a performance.
ESQ: What is a skill that you have picked up from a film role that most people would find bizarre?
NICHOLAS HOULT: I mean, there’s the usual actor things like horse riding and dancing, but I remember once while preparing for a military movie called Sand Castle, that we got to train at a Jordanian military base using their Kill House. So we would work with the Delta Force team and would run missions in there—us, a team of actors, would put all the skills we’d learnt into practice. It felt so real, and if someone got hit we had to behave like it was the real thing, pick them up and get them out. It was physically the toughest thing I’ve ever experienced and, obviously, very useful today whenever I go paintballing.