The stars who shaped Gary Oldman’s career: “To me, it was all about the actors”
Scour Hollywood’s landscape and you will find an array of different nationalities plumping up the studios’ coffers. Just like with music, there has always been a British presence in American culture, and when it comes to acting, Gary Oldman may well be the greatest the small island has to offer. But while he is regarded as one of the greats, he hasn’t always delivered supreme work, at least not according to the man himself.
Oldman gave an interview with Playboy back in 2014, where he lamented his own abilities as a performer—seemingly the only person who believes he lacks talent. Despite his self-doubt, Oldman insisted that great films are driven by the strength of their actors.
The actor reflected on the actors who really showed him the way forward in Hollywood: “To me, it was about the actors. It was Malcolm McDowell, Richard Harris, Albert Finney, Alan Bates, Peter Sellers. And Tom Courtenay in films like The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner.”
Oldman has a deep appreciation for the classics, crediting his inspiration to become an actor to Raging Moon, a film you’ve probably never seen. He describes it fondly (and assumes you haven’t): “Malcolm McDowell plays a sort of Cock o’ the North character, a sporting guy, a bit of a lad with the ladies. And he comes down with a paralyzing disease; it may have been polio. He loses the use of his legs and is confined to a wheelchair and gets shunted off to one of those homes where they look after the disabled.”
Though widely praised for his portrayal of Sid Vicious in Sid & Nancy, Oldman himself is unimpressed, admitting, “I don’t like myself in the movie, no. Frankly, I didn’t want to make it in the first place. I was talked into it at the time.” He adds, “I was the wrong person to play Sid Vicious.” The film’s critical and fan acclaim has done little to change his mind.
Perhaps Oldman’s belief that “actors make the movie” is why he sets such a high bar for himself—and why he remains so dismissive of his most famous roles. When asked by Playboy if he liked The Dark Knight or however many Harry Potter films he appeared in, he answered bluntly: “It was work.” The Fifth Element? “Oh no, I can’t bear it.” Bram Stoker’s Dracula? He dodges the question entirely, unwilling to acknowledge a single performance he’s proud of.
Already melancholic, the interview then takes a darker turn. Oldman, for reasons unclear, chooses to defend Mel Gibson’s infamous antisemitic rant, saying, “Mel Gibson is in a town that’s run by Jews. He’s like an outcast, a leper. Shall I stop talking now?” To which, as anyone should have advised him: yes, you should. Let your acting do the talking—even if you don’t personally like any of it.
