The only Jeff Bridges movie that “thrilled” his mother: “She likes 15% to 20%”
Early on in his career, Jeff Bridges struggled with the idea of nepotism.
As someone whose parents were both in show business, that was a very real and very valid struggle. In fact, he spent a lot of time wondering what he actually wanted to do that would be both challenging and creatively satisfying – until his father gave him some advice that opened his eyes. Acting, his father had said, was the only thing that would “call upon” all of his interests.
After Bridges’ first handful of movies, he still wasn’t sure he’d actually made it. He’d been exposed to the industry from a young age, but when he finally started standing on his own two feet, it would still take a while before he felt sturdy enough to credit himself as a proper or legitimate actor. Even after ten movies and an Oscar nomination, he still felt adrift elsewhere, immersed in interests outside of his chosen path, like music and painting.
In fact, for a while, Bridges was coasting a little, going between projects while waiting for the final one that would allow him an out. He’d just filmed Last American Hero when he felt exhausted and slightly disillusioned, but then he got offered a part in The Iceman Cometh, and he thought, “Okay, one more…” As we now know, that wasn’t Bridges’ last film, far from it, but it was the first time he’d ever felt seen by those around him, who also felt a similar level of performance anxiety whenever they tried something else, or something new.
That was the moment he realised he could follow that path for life. The difference, however, was that, along the way, Bridges still got to dip his toe in all of his other interests, like music, enjoying the never-ending journey of self-discovery well into his elder years.
The joy, he claims, isn’t the realisation of growing older and worrying about everything you haven’t done, but about feeling young and refreshed by the things that keep you energised, like The Abiders. “Why not?” He once told The Talks. “It’s never too late to dream and to fulfil your dreams.”
Suffice it to say that Bridges has felt fairly free in his career choices for a long while. He might have felt some invisible chord pulling him elsewhere in the beginning, but mostly, he’s far more gratified now than he thought he could or would be. That said, he’s aware that his path has been different to his parents’, and that they’re not always going to have the same tastes or opinions about everything.
In fact, Bridges once discussed how he differs from his mother, and that there’s one film in particular that she especially liked. “I love my family to love what I do, but my taste is very different from my mom’s taste,” he said. “She likes 15 to 20 percent of movies I make. She likes it when I play professional men, like a doctor. When I played the president of the United States, she was thrilled.”
The film in question was, of course, the 2000 political drama The Contender, in which Bridges starred alongside Gary Oldman and Joan Allen. It’s not really one widely considered one of Bridges’ best, however, with most opting for a more obvious choice with more range, like something like The Big Lebowski or Crazy Heart, for instance.
Bridges’ desire to break the mould probably came from the fact that his father had struggled to do the same, after one stint as a scuba diver ended with him being typecast as more of the same. The moment that he realised he needed to walk a different path came one day when he encountered someone who didn’t actually know what it was that his father did.
“I’ve taken that as a tip for my own career,” he said. “I’ve never developed a strong persona, so I can mix it up with the parts I play.”
