It might be one of the most popular films of the early aughts, but “Memento” star Guy Pearce has recently realized he can’t stand his role in the movie. “I watched ‘Memento’ the other day and I’m still depressed. I’m s–t in that movie,” the actor told The Telegraph in an interview published Saturday.
The actor rewatched the movie ahead of a planned Q&A event, he added, and “while it was playing I realized I hate what I did. And so all this stuff about an exec at Warners being why I’ve not worked with Chris again? It came crashing down. I know why I didn’t work with Chris again — it’s because I’m no good in ‘Memento.’”
The comment followed a question about why Pearce was not cast in Christopher Nolan’s Batman film that shortly followed “Memento.” Pearce had recently said that an executive at Warner Bros. had some kind of issue with him, the outlet pointed out, but the actor changed his mind on that after rewatching the movie.
“I was trying to do a flippant attitude but it was all wrong. John Gielgud once said, ‘You can be good in a good movie, good in a bad movie, bad in a bad movie, but never be bad in a good movie,’” Pearce also said of his performance. “Yet I watched Memento and realized I’m bad in a good movie. F–k!”
The actor also said he has not spoken to Nolan about his new position “because I reckon he’d agree with me.”
He continued, “It’s funny; people say I should’ve been nominated for ‘Memento.’ Now I understand why I wasn’t. Look, I’m pleased with LA Confidential, but I look at this and go, ‘Oof! Nails on a chalkboard!’ If I reckon my performance in Neighbours is two out of ten, Memento is a five.”
Elsewhere in the interview Pearce said he made “a bunch of s–t during my divorce because I needed the money.” He and his wife of 18 years divorced in 2015. “t was my divorce period, 2016, ’17 and ’18. I’d read scripts thinking, no, this is pretty good actually, I could do this … But a year earlier I would have said no. You’re forced to expand your tolerance of things when you need dough, so it was a real relief once I paid off my divorce,” he explained.
You can read the entire interview with Guy Pearce at The Telegraph.
