INTERVIEW & PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN RUSSO
STYLING BY | ANNIE PSALTIRAS
GROOMING BY | CHRISTINE NELLI
VIDEO BY | KEN WALLER
JR: What do you understand about acting now that you absolutely did not understand when you were 25?
RL: When I was a young actor, I didn’t appreciate that there are two goals: serve the character and story with honesty and simplicity and yet, plant your personal flag somewhere, somehow. Ideally, you should feel that you are the only actor who could’ve played the role, and the audience should feel the same way. Also, the ability to “hold a closeup” came with experience. It takes confidence, life experience, technique and truthfulness to simply let the camera do its work.
JR: You’ve had several careers within one career. What makes you say yes to something now?
RL: Here’s my checklist:
Am I excited in any way by the opportunity?
Who will be my partners?
Can I make a difference, can I bring something unique?
Is the juice worth the squeeze, timeframe, commitment, economics, travel, etc.
JR: You’ve become increasingly comfortable being funny about the idea of “Rob Lowe.” When did you realize that your own celebrity could become material?
RL: All my heroes have the ability to rib themselves. None of my favorites are in any way overly self serious or pretentious. JFK, Cary Grant, Paul Newman, all of them “get the joke.” Any one of them could’ve been precious and preening but they came off like guys who get it. From the beginning these were my models.
JR: When you look back, do you see a career you shaped intentionally or one you survived cleverly?
RL: Both. And equally so. In show business there are no set paths to success. You need to be lucky, you need to be good and you need to be nimble. In terms of planning, your main opportunity is being honest with yourself about your status, trends and which way the wind is blowing and recalibrate if you can. Move to TV, Drama to Comedy, etc.
JR: You came up in a Hollywood where becoming a movie star was a very specific thing. Is the concept of a “movie star” even the same anymore?
RL: They’ve shut down the movie star factory. They simply aren’t made anymore. There are a few, Rob Pattinson and others, but they simply aren’t made anymore. Hollywood is notoriously bad at knowing what to do with actors as they get older.
JR: You seem to have made aging into an advantage. Was that deliberate?
RL: Yes, I always thought I could have mac-opportunities past my 40s. All my favorites did their best work in the last third of their careers. As long as you continue to learn, experience and live life, you have more emotional ammo to use in your work. It’s been important to me that “Hollywood” and all its machinations is viewed in a paper context. It’s a privilege to earn a living as a craftsman in multiple areas, it’s important work, humanity needs storytellers, always has.
But perspective is hey, being famous doesn’t automatically make you an expert on subjects outside your experience and we are not curing cancer.
JR: You’ve played Presidents, Cops, Firefighters, Politicians, Doctors and now a Middle-School Principal who is essentially the villain in a war over a school musical. What was it about Principal Brady that made you say “I want to be this guy?”
RL: The script was one of the most audacious I have ever read. I love “Borat” or “Team America” or Alexander Payne’s “Election.” All are stories that you can’t believe actually got made. Particularly in today’s corporate/safe superhero movie world. And I had a very specific take on a part that could have been played in a lot of different ways.
JR: There’s something wonderfully absurd about Rob Lowe, the longtime Hollywood leading man, playing a man obsessed with winning a Blue Ribbon for his middle school. Did you lean into the ridiculousness of that?
RL: The more ridiculous the better! Always! That’s one of my mottos!
JR: You’ve had one of those careers that feels distinctly American – heartthrob, cautionary tale, comeback story, establishment figure. Which version of Rob Lowe feels most true to you now?
RL: First of all, thanks for that observation. I had to learn all of those descriptions in life! I’d like to think my journey has put me in a place of happy authenticity of today’s version:
Grateful, ensconced, relevant.
And be sure to go see Rob star in @themusicalthemovie, in theaters today!
To learn more about Rob Lowe follow him @roblowe