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What was it like to work with Robin Williams?
Posted by Unknown
on
06:17
Let's allow Robert De Niro to tell us about his experience making Awakenings with the much missed Mr Williams...
"I can think of lots of people who wouldn’t put me and Robin Williams together as close friends. Robin has this well-deserved reputation as an anarchic comic genius and, rightly or wrongly, I’m seen as this intense, “serious” actor. When we made Awakenings, though, Robin and I got on great. To be around someone with Robin’s energy fourteen hours a day, it’s impossible not to be tickled by him. I got the impression a lot of directors in the past had simply wanted Robin to show up and do his shtick. But Robin’s a really good actor, he’s very serious about his craft, and you could tell from our discussions that he really relished the opportunity to talk about acting. Oliver Sachs, the neurologist that inspired Robin’s character, had spoken to both of us at length and we were so impressed with his work that we both felt we owed it to him to do justice to his amazing story.
"So there you have us — two actors who get on well and are very committed to the movie they’re making. And then one of them goes and breaks the other one’s nose. And it’s not the guy who played Travis Bickle who breaks the nose, it’s Mork. What happened was, we were filming a scene that called upon Robin to be at his most animated. As you probably know, the guy never sits still anyway, so there was Robin pacing up and down and throwing his arms around, and there I am playing his catatonic patient. More than anything else during that scene, I was trying not to move. Because of the way I prepare for a role, I’d got the part down pretty good — so good in fact that, when Robin Williams’ elbow collided with my nose, I didn’t really flinch. It was only when the blood started to spurt out and the director Penny Marshall screamed “Cut!” that I realised how much damage had been done. Of course, Robin was mortified — “Oh, Robert, I’m so sorry! What have I done?”
"The thing is, I’d broken my nose before when I was young and when Robin whacked me, he straightened it back out again. I like to think it says a lot about Robin Williams that, when the guy breaks your nose, he leaves you looking better than you did before. Thanks, Robin, a professional couldn’t have done a better job."
"I can think of lots of people who wouldn’t put me and Robin Williams together as close friends. Robin has this well-deserved reputation as an anarchic comic genius and, rightly or wrongly, I’m seen as this intense, “serious” actor. When we made Awakenings, though, Robin and I got on great. To be around someone with Robin’s energy fourteen hours a day, it’s impossible not to be tickled by him. I got the impression a lot of directors in the past had simply wanted Robin to show up and do his shtick. But Robin’s a really good actor, he’s very serious about his craft, and you could tell from our discussions that he really relished the opportunity to talk about acting. Oliver Sachs, the neurologist that inspired Robin’s character, had spoken to both of us at length and we were so impressed with his work that we both felt we owed it to him to do justice to his amazing story.
"So there you have us — two actors who get on well and are very committed to the movie they’re making. And then one of them goes and breaks the other one’s nose. And it’s not the guy who played Travis Bickle who breaks the nose, it’s Mork. What happened was, we were filming a scene that called upon Robin to be at his most animated. As you probably know, the guy never sits still anyway, so there was Robin pacing up and down and throwing his arms around, and there I am playing his catatonic patient. More than anything else during that scene, I was trying not to move. Because of the way I prepare for a role, I’d got the part down pretty good — so good in fact that, when Robin Williams’ elbow collided with my nose, I didn’t really flinch. It was only when the blood started to spurt out and the director Penny Marshall screamed “Cut!” that I realised how much damage had been done. Of course, Robin was mortified — “Oh, Robert, I’m so sorry! What have I done?”
"The thing is, I’d broken my nose before when I was young and when Robin whacked me, he straightened it back out again. I like to think it says a lot about Robin Williams that, when the guy breaks your nose, he leaves you looking better than you did before. Thanks, Robin, a professional couldn’t have done a better job."
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