Video:James Marsden Interview - Death at a Funeral

SHARE ON                

Transcript:James Marsden Interview - Death at a Funeral

Rebecca Murray from About.com Hollywood Movies at the World Premiere of Screen Gems' Death at a Funeral.

James Marsden – 'Oscar' in Death at a Funeral

You're naked the whole movie?

James Marsden: "Not the whole movie but like the third act. I'm on acid, on an acid trip against my will during this funeral. And by the end of the film, I felt compelled to crawl out on the roof and take my clothes off and talk to the trees."

Which, of course, is what you would do if you were on acid.

James Marsden: "It's what you would do. Everything's really, really green."

I would imagine they didn't script it tightly and let you do what you wanted to do?

James Marsden: "Actually, they did. I mean the script was great. We had a great example in the original. The original was expertly executed. It was a great film. And actually Alan Tudyk, who played my role in the original, was flawless. He was pitch-perfect. The work that I had cut out for me was, 'How do I sort of make this my own and yet still make it right, and hit the notes that Alan hit?'. But the script was really great, but they did afford me a certain amount of latitude to mess around after a couple of takes because, you know, you don't want to be like restricted when you're on acid. It's like, 'I can't say my character wouldn't do that.' You know? Anything goes – there's no boundary. So as an actor, as a creative person, it's like, 'I could do anything I want. This is amazing.'"

This is a crazy kind of comedy for you because you don't usually do this.

James Marsden: "No, and I think that's what was sort of appealing to me about it. You know, I've been really lucky to have people taking chances on me, giving me opportunities to do roles that you might not see me in."

Lucky…but talent goes in there, not just luck.

James Marsden: "Well, you know I'm very proud of what I've done and everything, and my abilities. But, ultimately, they've got to take a chance on you. I just hope it just keeps working."

More on Death at a Funeral:

Death at a Funeral Photo Gallery

Death at a Funeral Interviews, Poster, Credits, and Trailer