The League of Austen Artists: Sam Worthington: Keira Knightley hated me because I was a bit of a jerk

Sam Worthington talks to Metro about going off the rails due to acting, why Keira Knightley thinks he's arrogant and playing a Mossad agent in his latest film, The Debt.

Sam Worthington plays a Mossad agent in The Debt (Picture: Rex)

What was it like to play a Mossad agent?
My character was labelled ‘troubled’ but that’s just something they write because it’s an easy way of understanding complexity. His family was killed in World War II and he’s trying to fill that void by seeking justice. Here’s a guy that’s like a volcano and when it erupts, he’s trying to put the lava back in without getting burnt. The film is about the question: will the truth set you free?
What was the biggest challenge?
Learning Krav Maga [Israeli martial art]. It’s about taking down opponents as quickly and as effectively as possible. Sometimes that means you put yourself in harm’s way to expose your opponent so you can finish them off.
How consumed are you by your job?
Acting is like a sickening addiction. You love it. You immerse yourself into the world of the movie and the challenges of the character. Things that the character goes through rub off into the fabric of your being whether you know it or not.
So you take your work home with you?
I do. For Texas Killing Fields [a thriller set in the US Deep South], I was a f***ing maniac. I play a guy who’s an angry racist dealing with dead bodies every day. I went off the rails, although I didn’t know it at the time. I listened to a lot of murder tapes. I pinned pictures of murders up. Believe me, that is horrible to be around. It’s always ringing in your head; it’s in your being. It gets harder and harder to let it go. You want to work again, you want to sink back into it.
Do you take holidays?
You can’t have a holiday from yourself. No matter where you go, you can’t shake what’s going on in your head.

What was it like working with Keira Knightley in Last Night?

Keira’s amazing – a consummate professional. We played a young married couple who have become complacent. For the first week of rehearsals I got to know her, we had barbecues and stuff, but I was struggling to get into the role. I thought if I treat her with complacency – like the character in the movie – that might help. So in the second week, I became complacent. Actually, I was a bit of a jerk. I didn’t turn up to rehearsals. Why? I couldn’t be bothered. And I picked fights with the director. In my head, I thought my character should be a bit of a jerk. Keira started to hate me. But to me that meant things were going well: we nailed our relationship right there. That is dedication. It was stupid. I’m not very good at turning it on and off. It will take a long time for her to stop seeing me as arrogant.
Did you always want to act?
I love acting but didn’t set out to be famous. If I’d wanted that, I would have gone on Big Brother. I’m not a great fan of people who say they put a sheet up in the backyard when they were seven and entertained the neighbours. When I was seven, I thought I was a fire truck. Growing up, you tended to just go through school to get out, then figured out what you want to do.
Will you ever settle down?
I am nomadic. I’ve got a bag of clothes and a bag of books. I don’t own a phone and I don’t want one. Sydney’s home but I am never there. I go where the work is and never get sick of hotels.
What do you do with the money?
I bought my sister a car. My best mates and I were teenagers with no money, you figure it out together, so we do that now. Even though one of the mates earns a bit more than the others, we still all pitch in.
Do you ever consider doing less intense roles?
A friend asked me: ‘When are you going to do a romantic comedy?’ I said: ‘I’ll do one if I can do it with Christian Bale.’ That would be the best rom-com ever. He is the most dedicated man on the planet. But we never get offered those parts.