Dermot Mulroney’s secret career: “It became a different perspective for me and source of pride”
Dermot Mulroney might just be one of the most charming and criminally underutilised leading men in Hollywood, with the actor starring in films like Zodiac, My Best Friend’s Wedding and Stoker, finding a niche place in the business as either the most charismatic love interest you’ve ever seen or in harrowing horror films that bear no resemblance whatsoever to the fuzzy rom-coms of the past.
But like many artists, Mulroney has many tricks up his sleeve. While he might have captured the hearts of audience members around the world through his on-screen chemistry with Julia Roberts, leading many people to also believe that they would sabotage their relationship in the hopes of being with him, acting is just one of Mulroney’s many talents, with the actor also appearing in colossal films like Spider Man: Far From Home, Star Wars and The Incredibles, just not on screen.
It takes a village to make a film, with directors working with countless other creatives to bring their vision to life, whether it be animators, camera operators or post-production assistants. But arguably one of the most important aspects of any film is the music, with countless film scores that have brought films to life and added the final missing piece to the puzzle.
Whether it be the critically overlooked score to Challengers, created by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, or the achingly beautiful piano score created by Carter Burwell for Carol or the recent success of Ludwig Göransson’s score for Sinners, the combination of sound and vision is what makes the movies – nothing would be impactful in the same way without the blissful marriage between both on screen.
Surprisingly, this is something all too familiar to Mulroney, with the actor also having a career as a professional cellist and playing on some of the most beloved film scores of all time. The actor began playing when he was ten years old, eventually becoming classically trained and going on to tour with singers like Alanis Morissette and Melissa Etheridge before expanding to the world of film scores.
Mulroney has regularly worked with Michael Giacchino, playing for film scores such as Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Incredibles, Inside Out and Spider Man: Far From Home. When discussing this, Mulroney said, “Obviously, I knew about orchestras, I knew how to play in one, I knew about scoring orchestras. But then when I start doing it, it really became a different perspective for me and such a source of pride — but pride related to the fact that I’m included in an exclusive group of musicians … really just towering talent. I’m more of a journeyman player.”
Apparently, the actor met Giacchino in 2005, and has since collaborated on most of his projects, with Mulroney accompanying some of the most commercially successful films of the last decade. While it never hurts to have multiple hobbies and back-up options when pursuing a career in the arts, Mulroney is one of the few whose hobbies have been equally as successful, marking him as a true jacks-of-all-trades.
