Caleb Landry Jones Interview: Dracula: A Love Tale by Luc Besson

I have so many questions for you but I just want to first start by saying I love this outfit how much have you thought about taking this home from set not not at all I have not thought about but will you take home the outfit no I will not take home the outfit it's fantastic um I saw a photo of you in the armor and I wanted to know what was it like that the first time you put on the armor and saw what Luke was going for with everything it was I got to meet Terry who came to do the armor and worked with Luke on johnar and he did um um he did thecal bird as well and so this was very exciting first off just to meet this man um and then see what they had put together um but the 12-year-old in me went you know was was over the moon because it was it was more fantastic and um just really cool you know was the word you know that popped up the 12-year-old me of wow that is so cool you know U and then getting in it another thing and then going okay how much can you move is another thing but it was um it's pretty wild and it was very thin and very light so it was so far has been pretty pretty good that's one of the things I wanted to touch on often costumes look amazing on screen but they are not great to work with as an actor because they sometimes can't move he not have this problem so much I was watching Interview with Peter Weller for Robocop and I think they had 10 and 1 half hours for the suit and this is this is nothing this what we have is 4 hours of makeup and uh on some days and some very thin aluminum armor that looks so cool um but can bend and can be um you know contoured if this is the right word to to fit better and things like this so pretty pretty easy in that way compared to other films Excalibur or Joon the VAR for example yeah but I think the armor was 40 kilos or something 20 at least I think what it has he said he has was but I also think it has to do maybe with technology now and 3D printing and the material course yes yes yes I definitely curious um when you are presented a role like Dracula and Luke tells you that I'm interested in you being in this is it nerve-wracking is it exciting what what goes through your mind because it's such an iconic character because we talk about it in a way that is very normal um he talk about it in the way of very very simply just looking at kind of like looking at um I don't know how to describe it like looking at you and thinking what can I do with what I have in front of me what what could you what could it be kind of thing and he thought he said he mentioned Dracula but I did not know if he was serious or not or if we had not started filming dog man yet so I I wasn't sure and then over the weeks every now and again would maybe bring it up over like a week or month or something no I think I think Dracula I think you could I think it could you could do I think and then script come later and then it is now real in another way now we fil it but um so at beginning very just kind of I don't know I cannot see myself so much no you think but what about cop that is pretty good you know and just just very simple talking about you know sure not so much as uh um in this way of present to you this and yes or no you know kind of thing not so much like this more of very normal very natural I am curious I am a fan of your work and I'm what is it like for you before once you know you're doing this how early on are you analyzing how you want to play it finding the voice you want to use um just getting ready to inhabit a character like this I don't know for me all of this stuff go kind of out the window and um it is more about meeting Luke um in space What He is wanting and way for me to find way for myself to make sense of things that make it what he want and so that he have and this is um this is how it is so for me it is more the SC come then make sense of this for myself and kind of way but then you start these things that he give you that you need like the stunt or the horses or the costume or the the armor for example or something and then you start to realize more kind of what it is and these are things that I could have not have imagined from a kitchen in La other than oh that will probably be hard and all that might be hard and oh I really better start with dialect soon and things like this but more practical um and then many many many many many talking with Luke and going over script and going over ah yes and he's feeling this and this and so by the time we film um there is not so much question as much in this way um except we film some things and these things tell more what the next thing is and maybe this deviates a little bit but for the most part it is really all about trying to understand and figure out for myself to to get for him what what cuz he see very much sure all of this and I am focused very much on one particular thing one of the things about Dracula is that uh in Vampires is that every film you probably know much more no I I'm I'm not an expert believe me but one of the things is there's each version has different powers the different rules what are some of the what are you looking forward to audiences seeing with this version I'm excited that we see usually we do not see the character from this perspective in this sense we do not get to stay with him for as long as we do in this film usually the monster is away and we play around with this throughout the film you know and we don't get um so much to hear from from him um and and in this film we we get to spend time with with him in a way that we have not before which is good usually take the monster away from you this one give the monster to you for well Lucas talked about this is really a love story that is that is the movie Yes I oh yes yes don't know if I know this I'm just the script says a love tale both totally but can you talk about that aspect and also working with your coaster are uh to to bring this love story to life it was the time that we had before filming Zoe and I were able to Zoe had idea about particular kind of dance that come from Japan that was brought from mercury poisoning and dadaism and we take a few classes that Luke introduces to someone here and there are some things that we were able to find early on that I we bring into the movie [Music] um but um the the love is a very much a a mad about each other in the emphasis on the Mad part but absolutely eating each other up devouring one another for every moment that they are together and and we see this and the love is is is something that begin but does not get to be fulfilled and she is taken from him in time when it is the early the butterflies are still flying around it is it is the first love in in this way it is the first time if you're lucky to have this in life it is the first love and um and then it gets cut short and it become about longing for this and um entering into a kind of Madness in a way seclusion and and um um isolation and um it get more confusing as time passes and hundreds of years pass by but it is it is This Love that he is he will go he will do anything for and has to find a way outside of God um to to get it back or order to find it again and through reincarnation he wait and wait and wait and search and search and search and give up and wait and wait and wait and and and have this madness and before he finds her again I'm almost out of time this might be my last question one of the things that I am looking forward to seeing is how Luke is taking this film in the 15th century 16th 17th eight like he's showing the passage of time I was watching behind the scenes of Alice and Wonderland and they said we have lot of costume changes I think Alice has six I think we have 28 or 26 and I thought oh well six is not so bad that's what I wanted to Luke told me there's 20 something costume changes and I wanted to know for you what has it been like like acting or being part of centuries like that cuz it's very cool no it is it this is this is incredible but we have an incredible costume Department that is everything is looking like as you see the set designer who is incredible everyone is doing such good work um but to see this 15th 16th 17th get into the 18th it is very and to have differences possibly in Social aspect of this time and what does this do and it is very um when you get to come to um I forget what building we were in and it is supposed to be Versa and everyone is dressed like you know powder twigs and this and and is quite amazing and get angry and upset and maybe take a few you know but no no it is really something to see the timeline chart 15 to 18 and it is I'm very happy to live in the time that I live in now aren't you 100% not need help to get dressed is is very nice you um at least you were not wearing a corset no no that was the last film we don't do this in this film yes now for other people everyone else were coret in this movie exactly I think I think I need to stop with you I'm just going to say I'm we have a stunt we need to take wig off and learn I movements better I uh I think they were coming to attack you I think they were we listening to yes they are coming for something exactly um thank you so much for your time I really I really appreciate thank you very much seriously this it's a great look [Music]