Video:The Invention of Lying - Ricky Gervais Interview
with Rebecca MurrayRicky Gervais co-wrote, co-directed and stars in 'The Invention of Lying,' a film set in an alternate universe where no one ever lies. At the film's premiere, Gervais, co-writer/director Matthew Robinson and producer Lynda Obst chatted up the comedy.
Transcript:The Invention of Lying - Ricky Gervais Interview
Rebecca Murray from About.com Hollywood Movies at the US Premiere of Warner Bros Pictures' The Invention of Lying.
Ricky Gervais - Writer, Director and Star of The Invention of Lying
Why did you want to do everything – director and star in – this project?
Ricky Gervais: "Because if I'm there and I'm up, I might as well get paid four times. I don't know. The reason you sort of do it all is that it sort of comes as a package. I see myself as a writer/director first and maybe an actor and producer second. And the reason I think I direct and produce is to protect the writing. That's the most important thing for me, really. I don't want… If you come up with a good script or a good idea, it's really precious. And so I don't think I'm the best director in the world or the best producer but I know the way I want it, and that's all that matters to me. I want it done my way, really."
Can you take off one hat and put on another?
Ricky Gervais: "It all comes as a package. I know what I want. I don't have to consult. I know what I want so I do what's best for the film. I do what's best for the creative process. That's the only thing that matters to me. Nothing else, and then if I'm proud of it then I can come out here and I can tell people it's a really good film and I can mean it."
What's your attraction to this story?
Ricky Gervais: "I suppose you write about what you know and the first thing that I did was I created The Office because I worked in an office for seven years. And then I did Extras, I'd been in show business for five years. And this is quite a philosophical film, actually, and I earned a degree in philosophy. It's funny. It's what I do. It's still a comedy, but it takes you on an emotional journey as well. There's points of drama. But I think it's the big questions we touch on, really. This looks at the meaning of life."
Matthew Robinson – Co-writer and Co-director of The Invention of Lying
Is it true that this was inspired by a Twilight Zone episode?
Matthew Robinson: "It was. The idea came to me after watching in bed sick for a weekend a marathon of Twilight Zone episodes. And I woke up with a Twilight Zone episode that had never been made that I just was shocked was never a Twilight Zone episode. And being a comedy writer, I set out to turn it into a comedy."
And Ricky Gervais came onboard?
Matthew Robinson: "And then Ricky read an early draft of the script and sparked to the idea and loved it, and blew my mind and wanted to be involved in it."
How does the 'co' doing things work together?
Matthew Robinson: "Well, it's easy. We didn't split the duties as some co-directors do. We did everything together, and so everyone just had to ask us both. And if we both agreed on something, then we did it. Every detail from the smallest thing to the biggest thing we both had to agree on equally. It was really easy and fun."
What happens if you disagree?
Matthew Robinson: "Then we throw out that idea and find something different that we both like. That way there's nothing in the movie that either one of us cringes when it comes on screen. Every single thing we both like equally."
Do you think it's possible to even go a month without telling a lie?
Matthew Robinson: "No, I think you'd lose all your friends and all of your family members. It would be awful."
And getting this cast right out of the box, how are you ever going to top this?
Matthew Robinson: "I don't know if I will, but I'll try. But it'll be hard. This is Ricky Gervais in his first American film was able to get so many people wanting to be involved in it. I don't think anyone – either one of us – will ever be able to recreate that just because it was his first film and so many people were fans and wanted to be in on the ground floor, so to speak."
What's next for you?
Matthew Robinson: "Writing scripts. Putting a script together now, hopefully direct it next year."
So more directing in the future?
Matthew Robinson: "If they'll let me."
Producer Lynda Obst - The Invention of Lying
How did you get involved in this project in the first place?
Lynda Obst: "Well interestingly this project my son actually introduced to me and then I had to beg him to produce it. He found the script, his writer wrote it, and he called me up and he said, 'Mom, Matty actually wrote a great script.' And I said, 'Fantastic. Let me read it.' I did. I loved it. I wanted to produce it. And he said, 'I'm not giving my first to my mother.' I said, 'Well, what do I have to do to produce it?' And he said, 'Relax. I'm going to give it to a bunch of other people.'"
So finally I said, 'If I give it to Ricky Gervais, which is who Matty wrote it for, can I produce it?' And I got on a plane, went to England, got it to Ricky Gervais and the next thing you knew, I was producing it. He made it very hard for me."
That's your son. You'd think that he'd throw you a bone.
Lynda Obst: "I know, really. No bones for mom. But it was really fun to make the movie with him."
I heard that Ricky Gervais has Nerf guns and stuff like that on the set. Is that true?
Lynda Obst: "It was a very male set. I had to constantly avoid the slings and arrows of Nerf guns. Jen [Garner] and I were constantly ducking them as we discussed hair and makeup and shoes – and babies."
[Lynda's son Oly joins us]
You wouldn't let her produce?
Oly Obst: "No, I would not. Not without me."
That's so mean.
Oly Obst: "Why is it mean? I wanted to be there with her. I wanted to do it with my mom."
Yeah, but you made her jump through hoops to actually do this.
Oly Obst: "Earn it. Everything you want to do, all great things comes from the achieving of goals and earning it – and that's what she did."