You know Boyd Holbrook. Maybe you’ve seen his past campaigns (Uniqlo, Gap, Viktor & Rolf, etc.) or maybe just because he’s the guy of which dreams are made. Appalachian-born and rugged, he says he only modeled to pay for college, and now he’s laser-focused on writing movies and hanging out in Bushwick bars. Holbrooke seems almost dangerous, with nonchalant, possibly un-showered looks and a homemade tattoo of the name “Edith” on his wrist — for the special lady in his life, his great-grandma. He’s the soulful bad boy you didn’t think existed. In fact, Boyd Holbrook is the stuff of Stephenie Meyer books.
Which is probably why he nabbed a part in her upcoming movie, The Host, which is already being touted as the next Twilight. But before the hordes come for him, he’s starring with Dakota Fanning and (rumored girlfriend) Elizabeth Olsen in Very Good Girls. He also has done an excellent job of making us feeling very, very nervous — probably because he sat about six inches away from the interviewer the entire time. So, we have transcribed the entire chat so you can see how we did…and let us know what we could have done better?
Thanks so much, Boyd, we really appreciate you sitting down with us.
“Refinery29 is a woman thing, right? I have always felt like I was born a woman.”
Well, we will definitely put that in the article. So…let’s get started. How is this different from modeling? Is it harder?
“Well, it’s night and day.”
In terms of difficulty?
“Well, fashion is quite mindless. You know, I just sat there and got my photograph taken. I was just doing it to pay for school.” (Picks up the interviewer’s glove and begins to try to put it on.)
In the movie, your character has two women at odds over you. Has that ever happened in real life?
“Have I? I don’t think so…”
Do you need help with that? The glove is upside down. (Boyd continues to struggle.) You just…you are getting closer.
“Oh, God. It goes like that. (Wiggles thumb in thumb hole.) This is more to my speed. Oh, your questions. In a lot of fantasies, I think women fight over me.”
Which girl would you have picked? The bohemian musician or the troubled overachiever?
“Well, I just like women…who have their own life and are very secure with themselves. It’s so hard to say a category. I do, however, have a really, really special bond with redheads. They are their own special kind. It’s amazing.” (Note: The interviewer has bright red hair; Boyd is grinning.)
Um…So, you’ve got this other movie coming out, too, which everybody is calling the next Twilight. What are you doing to prepare for that?
“Oh God, I can’t wait for that. I actually don’t know if it is going to have the same type of phenomenon.”
Well, we don’t have Twilight or Harry Potter anymore, so we are going to need to get our teen-drama fix somewhere…
“You are right. Ugh. And then the tabloids will get a hold of us and ruin our lives. Hopefully. I am crossing my fingers.”
This film is very much a New York film, and it really captures the city in the summer.
“It’s (cinematographer) Bobby Bukowski, man. He’s got such a great eye.
You guys filmed the summer before Sandy in The Rockaways. Is it weird to think some of that stuff is just gone?
“Oh, wow. Yeah, the opening scene is on the beach. And I guess it’s just not there.”
What else are you working on?
“I’ve got a film I’ve written that I’ll be directing this summer. It’s about two boys in Appalachia in 2003, who enlisted in the military to escape their world. I exhibited sculpture in Manhattan and also did a bit of photography recently. Oh, and I have six movies coming out this year.”
That’s a lot!
“Yeah. Where do you live? You live in Bushwick, huh?”
No, I live in Williamsburg. But not because I have a problem with Bushwick.
“On the L? What stop?”
Graham.
“Oh, that’s definitely Williamsburg.”
Yeah, it’s a great ‘hood. Hey, can I have my glove back?
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