Milla Jovovich interview
One the eve of the release of the third – and supposedly final – installment of the wildly popular Resident Evil film franchise, actress Milla Jovovich is still surprised at the success the video game-based series had had on the big screen. She says, “It’s incredible. I had no idea when I did the first film that this would be such a big deal for me. I never really expected this to go on as long as it did. I think this is the best one so far and I had great fun making it.”
Meeting fiancee Paul W.S. Anderson [writer of all three films and director of the first installment] wasn’t the only perk to getting into the franchise for Jovovich, 31. She reveals, “Just the fact that it kept me in shape is great because I’m pregnant now and I can’t imagine going through this if I wasn’t in as good of shape as I am now.”
Even at eight months pregnant, Jovovich is still willing to promote the film and is looking forward to her appearance at the premiere in Las Vegas this week. She beams, “It’s exciting – all of the blackjack tables have Resident Evil on them, they’re serving zombie drinks and all of the waiters are dressed like zombies at Planet Hollywood. They’ve got a really cool undead theme going on.”
So why is this the best Resident Evil movie so far?
Personally, I think it’s really amazingly made. You have these incredible landscapes and this totally new view of the world in this post-apocalyptic Earth where everything is like a desert. The characters are great, the story is cool – it’s got a lot of twists and the special effects are amazing. It’s a really fun movie to just go and watch on the weekend and escape into this really amazing world.
Are you still doing your own stunts on these movies?
Yeah, I’ve always tried to do my own stunts. I’ve always enjoyed martial arts and dangerous things in partly safe environments – like film sets – because you get to be like at a theme park but it’s just you so I’ve been able to run down walls and jump off high places and cool things you’re not normally able to do, so I wouldn’t miss it for the world.
It’s been a while since we’ve heard any music from you. Are you done with that as a career or just taking a break?
You know, I haven’t been doing as much music lately because I started a clothing line with my best friend but I had two shows this year – one in Moscow and one in Paris, which was really fun because I hadn’t performed in a few years and it gave me the stage buzz again. It makes me really want a band again. Professionally, I don’t know. I think I’ll always make music and release it online but making a business out of it now I’m not thinking about. Everything in my life is business so it’s nice to have something that’s just personal.
You actually designed some of the costumes in the film based on your clothing line, right?
Yeah. Our clothing line is Jovovich-Hawk and we’re in our fourth year of doing this professionally and it was really funny because we usually make clothes out of our imagination and this was more like, “OK, if you were in a desert, how would you dress? What would you need?” It opened up a new horizon for us. The clothing in the movie is pretty extreme, but we made these really cool jean shorts with a star on the bum last year and we used that idea in the movie because in a way it’s an homage to the Stars team on Resident Evil. I thought it would be cute to use those in the film and we’ll definitely make them again.
You’ve been on over 100 magazine covers and are always on the “hot list”, but you seem to keep a fairly low profile otherwise. How do you not let celebrity get to you?
I’m a pretty private person, so over the years I think I’ve done a good job of keeping my private life private and keeping the public person from the private person. I don’t go to parties just to go unless there’s a reason. Lately I’ve wanted to stay home more. It’s good because people don’t know everything about me and it’s keeps this allure. I think when we know too much about people, we lose interest and it takes some of the magic away, so I like to keep a little bit of mystery about myself. It keeps me interested in me. If I get bored with myself, I feel like I have to do something new and interesting to keep myself interested.
What are some of your favorite horror films?
One of my favorite movies of all time is The Shining. It’s one of those creepy movies that I can’t get enough of watching. I’ve never totally been the horror movie person but I have to say I definitely enjoyed the Saw movies, but I have to say I didn’t watch them normally – I had to watch them through my hands. Most of the stuff I’m closing my eyes for and I like to watch them with people who have already seen them so they can tell me when the scary parts are coming.
If this does well, can we expect more of you battling the undead?
[Laughs] Well, I don’t think so. It’s supposed to be a trilogy, so unless Paul Anderson gets a really awesome idea, I think this is it.
Resident Evil: Extinction opens everywhere on Friday, September 21st.
Interview by Paul Salfen.
RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION REVIEW
DISCUSS ON GUTS AND GORY
