BAD EDUCATION - Potential SPOILERS

[jo]

Same ironic vein runs thru this trailer announcement --

uproxx.com/tv/hugh-jackman-bad-education-superintendant-trailer/

The nation’s schools are (for the most part, hopefully) closed right now as we tend to the rampaging COVID-19. But at least we can enjoy schools on TV. On April 25 — when, despite the president’s, if you will, rosy estimations, we may all still be locked inside under quarantine — HBO will air Bad Education, in which Hugh Jackman plays a corrupt superintendant whose embroiled his Long Island high school in a massive embezzlement scheme.

Despite airing on the world’s most premium premium channel, Bad Education is a TV show or even a Watchmen-style miniseries. It’s a movie, and by all accounts a quite good one; indeed, it was one of the best-received titles at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival. But non-franchise movies, even ones that star franchise superstars like the erstwhile Wolverine/Logan, don’t play mainstream movie theaters much anymore, and besides movie theaters don’t currently exist anyway.
In any case, the movie — whose story was told in this must-read New York piece — looks like it scratches the same tall-tale funny-but-serious-but-funny itch as I, Tonya, which makes sense since Jackman’s partner-in-crime is Allison Janney. Ray Romano also has a key role, proving for the umpteenth time he’s legit, while Geraldine Viswanathan, very good in Blockers, plays the student who brings the whole enterprise down. See you in about a month, although hopefully by then we’ll be able to be as far from our homes as possible.

[jo]

Lol - those crinkles are full of charisma - Hugh Jackman variety


Jo

[jo]

Clearly written by a Jackman fan


www.cinemablend.com/television/2493395/hugh-jackman-reminds-us-how-funny-he-is-in-first-trailer-for-hbos-bad-education

Hugh Jackman Reminds Us How Funny He Is In First Trailer For HBO's Bad Education
Mike Reyes
Mar. 26. 2020 1:21 PM

Hugh Jackman is one hell of a talented actor, with a range so great it's likely he could do pretty much anything. In the past, he’s taken ample time to remind the world he can sing and dance as well as sprint and slash enemies in half with adamantium claws. Now, his latest HBO film Bad Education is about to remind you of another one of his most effective skills: The man is going to make you laugh again.

Take a look at the first trailer for Bad Education below:

HBO's Bad Education Official Trailer

Check out Hugh Jackman showing off his comedic chops in the upcoming HBO movie Bad Education.

The humor on display in Bad Education helps to tell its very real story of a huge crime that was visited upon the Roslyn school district of New York. Overseen by Jackman’s character, superintendent Dr. Frank Tassone, some financial irregularities pop up in the school district’s budget. $250,000 worth, to be specific. Which is exactly when Dr. Tassone, and his fellow employees, start to panic.


Such real crimes are perfect fodder for a dramedy like Bad Education, and with Hugh Jackman’s deadpan performance on either line of his public and private persona, it’s clearly going to be an exciting ride for those who don’t know the story behind director Cory Finley’s film. Though even if you do know the wild twists and turns this story takes, it looks like this recounting of those fateful events should still play rather well, as shown in the trailer released by HBO earlier today.

Keeping the action fresh is the fact that Hugh Jackman’s Bad Education cast mates are as funny as he is, with Academy Award-winner Allison Janney and Emmy Award-winner Ray Romano both adding to Jackman's moments with their own brands of humor. From the opening scene, where Janney and Jackman banter over a tempting sandwich in the time of a diet crunch, there’s a sense that instead of acting as a straightforward drama of financial malfeasance, Bad Education is going to be a bit more irreverent than some may have expected.

The debut of Bad Education couldn’t come at a better time. After landing a hefty acquisition by HBO Films at last year’s Sundance Film Festival, no one had known when the film would debut. But now, with a late April air date secured and announced in this trailer, and audiences quarantining at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, it feels like the perfect time to debut a new Hugh Jackman movie.

With his star power as bright as ever, Jackman’s shine could draw even more viewers to the platform that also brought us Westworld and Game of Thrones. And all it took was a generous checkbook on both sides of the screen.
Bad Education premieres on HBO, Saturday, April 25th at 8pm ET, so we don't have too long to wait to catch the programming. In the meantime, see what else is coming this spring with our full TV schedule.

[jo]

This highlight on the writeup for the trailer --

www.firstshowing.net/2020/hugh-jackman-allison-janney-in-official-trailer-for-bad-education/

"Frank – you have nothing to worry about." "Frank's gonna fix this." HBO has just revealed the full-length official trailer for Cory Finley's film Bad Education, which was one of the big breakout features from the Toronto Film Festival last fall. The film is a fictionalized version of the true story of the single largest public school embezzlement scandal in history - about schools on Long Island. You can read more about it in this NY Mag article that this film is based on. Hugh Jackman stars as Frank Tassone, the superintendent caught up in an embezzling scheme involving him and a few of his employees. The cast includes Allison Janney, Ray Romano, Geraldine Viswanathan, Kathrine Narducci, and Alex Wolff. Looks wicked good, demented but still good. Based on this footage it should live up to festival hype. A must watch trailer.

.

[jo]

The film bloggers ( major film sites) are eager to report on a new film release ( TV movie or...er...no cinemas at the moment) --

collider.com/bad-education-trailer-hugh-jackman-hbo/

‘Bad Education’ Trailer Promises Hugh Jackman Crime Movie Won’t Be a “Puff Piece”
by Jeff Sneider March 26, 2020


HBO has released a full-length teaser for its upcoming Hugh Jackman movie Bad Education,] which finds the former X-Men star playing a very different kind of mutant — a crooked superintendent of schools in a small Long Island community.

Directed by Cory Finley (Thoroughbreds), Bad Education is based on the true story of Frank Tassone, who works in the Roslyn School District alongside his trusted assistant superintendent Pam Gluckin (Allison Janney). He’s beloved by students, parents and teachers alike, but when a plucky student reporter (Geraldine Viswanathan) decides to dig deep into some shady expense reports, she begins to uncover an embezzlement scheme of epic proportions, prompting Frank to devise an elaborate cover-up — by any means necessary.

Image via HBO

HBO spent $20 million for worldwide rights to Bad Education, which is based on the 2004 New York magazine article written by Lost Girls author Robert Kolker. In a fascinating twist, screenwriter Mike Makowsky was actually a Roslyn middle school student when this scandal broke, putting his hometown in the headlines.

Bad Education co-stars Ray Romano (The Irishman), Alex Wolff (Hereditary) and Annaleigh Ashford (Impeachment: American Crime Story), and will hit HBO on April 25. With no significant theatrical releases expected, it will now arrive as a much-needed piece of entertainment, as I expect millions of Americans will remain stuck in quarantine at that time. That means you likely have two minutes to watch the trailer below.

To read Adam Chitwood‘s review from last year’s Toronto International Film Festival festival, click here.

This is part of Chitwood's review --

But when Bad Education works, it works well. Jackman turns in one of his most compelling performances in recent memory, and the skill with which he masks Frank’s simmering indignity and frustration is downright masterful. This is a truly layered performance, but one in which the layers don’t peel off and devolve into screaming matches or tear-filled breakdowns. Instead, shades of Frank’s true nature are glimpsed only in brief flashes played with expert subtlety by Jackman. Janney similarly is terrific here (but honestly when is she not?), as Pam puts on the face of the woman who holds the school together while enjoying her private life of wealth a bit too publicly. You can pretty much bet that when you cast Allison Janney in your movie she’ll become something of an MVP, and that’s definitely true of her work here.
There’s a lot to like in Bad Education, especially in the performances and how it gives Jackman a chance to show a different side of himself. It doesn’t entirely come together as a satisfying whole—it’s a tad long and the thematic ideals don’t completely coalesce—but Finley is able to craft a handsomely-made, compelling, character-driven feature out of this pretty crazy true story.

[jo]

Soon after its TIFF premiere, following rave reviews, Bad Education was picked up by HBO, resulting in it skipping a theatrical release and arriving straight to their channel and streaming platforms. While many were sad that this news meant the film’s profile may have been lessened, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it’s now become one of the most high-profile releases of a spare month. Arriving on April 25, HBO has now released a new trailer.

[jo]

People.com puts up an article on the Bad Education trailer!

Lol - how often will People.com do that for an indie

Must be the dearth of other exciting entertainment news

people.com/movies/hugh-jackman-and-allison-janney-play-notorious-long-island-school-scammers-in-bad-education-trailer/

[jo]

EW adds to the publicity -- and praises the accent-perfect performances.

[jo]

[jo]

http://instagram.com/p/B-rjhZPjBO1

[jo]

Great-looking posters!

[jo]

They're ramping up the publicity for the movie --

www.vitalthrills.com/2020/04/07/bad-education-photos-and-poster-released-by-hbo/



www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/1130571-bad-education-poster-photos?slideshow=135501#/slide/1

[jo]

Rafael Casal, who plays Frank Tassone's special friend, tweets photos from BAD EDUCATON --

And from the Toronto festival --

Hugh is MIA - doing the tour


Jo

[jo]

In one of his Instagram Stories --

www.instagram.com/stories/thehughjackman/2282305919474541135/

Hugh notes the chat with HFPA - the foreign press who gives the Golden Globes awards!

Will this be for purposes of the yearend TV awards for the Golden Globes ... and/or to publicize the HBO release overseas


Jo

[jo]

They tried to make Hugh look a little closer to the real-life Frank...but with much less success ( mission impossible!)



In the recently-released poster ( Hugh and Allison sitting in a ballpark) -- it looks like he has a paunch

Apr 7, 2020 8:52:32 GMT -5 jo said:

http://instagr.am/p/B-rjhZPjBO1

Jo

[jo]

On a side note --

Hugh Jackman has done quite a few biopics/biomusicals --

*As Peter Allen in The Boy from Oz
*As P.T.Barnum in The Greatest Showman
*As Gary Hart in The FrontRunner
*As Frank Tassone in Bad Education

There hasn't been much effort to make him look like the characters, physically-speaking. Maybe the closest would be that of Gary Hart?

Presumably, Hugh's and the filmmaker's interest is to tell the essential story and not necessarily to use makeup and prosthetics for mimicry's purposes?

Jo

[jo]

It seems there will be other streaming service that will present BAD EDUCATION soon.

[jo]

Another image from the movie --

[jo]

What an irony --

Bad Education is being screened by HBO-USA, HBO-Asia, HBO-LatinAmer, HBO-EasternEurope --

but not in Australia or Western Europe, where HBO has no presence?

Amazon will air it on Prime Video - I do not know if that is available on some overseas locations? Or via other streaming services?


Jo

[hu4601]

Apr 13, 2020 21:50:14 GMT -5 jo said:

What an irony --

Bad Education is being screened by HBO-USA, HBO-Asia, HBO-LatinAmer, HBO-EasternEurope --

but not in Australia or Western Europe, where HBO has no presence?

Amazon will air it on Prime Video - I do not know if that is available on some overseas locations? Or via other streaming services?


Jo

   
    Foxtel will be airing it in Australia. The April monthly magazine has a 2 page article about it. Hugh is a former Foxtel ambassador, and Brian Walsh, the CEO is a personal friend who was acknowledged by Hugh during one of the Aussie concerts, as one who had a big influence on his early career.

[jo]

That's good to know...there were some tweets from Australia which indicated they did not know about the Foxtel airing.

Also, a lot of tweets from the UK about not being to get the screening, although some caught the movie on the big screen at the London Film Festival last year.

Jo

[jo]

Interview for Bad Education...but more of life on lockdown/isolation --

Movies
Hugh Jackman on meditating, ironing and backgammon during NYC lockdown


(Above) Jackman as superintendent Frank Tassone who embezzled millions. PHOTO: HBO


Australian movie star worried about his kids during pandemic lockdown in New York, drawn to 'slipperiness of truth' in Bad Education

Meher Tatna
Entertainment Columnist
Reporting from Los Angeles
Apr 15, 2020 06:00 am


Meditation is one of the things Hugh Jackman always goes back to, and never more so than now, in this unprecedented time of self-isolation and social distancing.

He said: "Meditation is accepting that the surface of the water, which is our daily life, can be calm, tranquil and beautiful one day, and it can be rocky and treacherous the next.

"But no matter what is on the surface, there is a calm to be accessed beneath the water. Which is why I have done it for 25, 30 years."

The 51-year-old Australian actor was on a video conference call last week talking about how he is coping with the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown that is affecting people all over the world.



But he is more worried about his children - a 19-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter - than himself.

"I'm worried about them and their mental state, not being at school and not being around friends. And also, just that pervasive anxiety - I don't want that to impact them too harshly."


Jackman is hunkered down with his wife Deborra-Lee Furness and their children in New York City, one of the hot spots for the coronavirus in the US.


Our interview is for his new movie Bad Education, which premieres on April 26 at 8am on HBO GO and airs on the same day at 10pm on HBO.

Family time under lockdown involves a lot of cooking and playing endless backgammon.

"My cooking has about a 50 per cent hit rate. Quite often I cook and then the kids go, 'Can I order Postmates (food delivery), dad?'

"And we are playing record numbers of backgammon, Deb and I. We normally play 10 games a day. It's got to be 20 or 30 right now."



One endearing thing he confessed to is doing a particular chore.

IRONING
"The greatest thing that has happened to me in the last three months is that I got glasses. We sit down in the family room and I have an ironing board there. I do the ironing while I watch a lot of TV. I knew I needed glasses for distance, and I was thinking TV is not distance. So for years I've been watching TV thinking that's the way TV is. I put on the glasses and I had no idea how good TV is," he said with a laugh.



"I am so blessed that I am allowed to stay at home.

"Doctors, nurses, firemen, police officers, they are working out there on the front lines."

For him, the Big Apple "feels like a post-apocalyptic movie with no one around", but he has managed to connect with others in this dystopian time.

He said: "You know the saying, 'Man plans, and God laughs?' The only thing that we can really rely on is community and being there for each other. That sense of community has got a lot stronger here because this is a world pandemic, everyone's in the same situation.

"There are some people I am talking to now that I've seen for 10 years and have never spoken. People seem to have more time, they talk to each other. The optimist in me hopes that that will continue."



Jackman had planned to take six months off in any case before his new Broadway show, The Music Man, was scheduled to open in October.

"I had done a concert tour last year around the world and I had spent a lot of time away from the home, more than usual. So I had already planned for this time. I am actually enjoying it, to be with the family, to be simple, to be quiet."
But keeping on working is important for him - even in self-isolation and not knowing if the show will go on.

He said: "I would be lying if I said I am not dancing in my living room a little bit. We did a little bit of a workshop back in February, so I know what some of the dances are going to be. I am still doing singing lessons and singing every day.

"I was with the musical director today on FaceTime for an hour going through the whole score. So it's clear to me that a little bit of work keeps me sane. Also, eight shows a week in a musical, you have to be in top shape. We start rehearsals June 29 hopefully. I thought I have got to be ready for that."



And unlike other Hollywood stars who have had their films postponed due to the pandemic, Jackman is at least able to promote his upcoming small-screen release.

The comedy-drama Bad Education is based on a true story and sees him playing a school superintendent in an expensive Long Island school district. Frank Tassone was instrumental in boosting its nationwide ratings and college admissions, and incidentally, local property values.

What no one was aware of was that he and his colleague (Allison Janney) had been systematically stealing millions from the school, and the embezzlement was found out only when a student reporter on the school paper started asking uncomfortable questions.



IMPRISONED

Jackman did not meet Tassone, who was imprisoned in 2006 and released in 2010.

"It's all public record. I actually hired a researcher. I had reams of material, newspaper articles, hours and hours of video of him talking about the incident."

What attracted him to the part was what he calls the "slipperiness of truth".

"I like the grey areas of humanity. In the end, a lot of people went to jail. They did something very, very bad and stole public money - it was the largest theft in school history.

"But that slipperiness of truth, what starts as something so small and justifiable, can snowball into a 12 million dollar thing. And they will somehow justify it to themselves.

"And imagine the courage it took for 15-year-old kids writing in a school paper to actually uncover a scandal of this size. I think that was the other part of the story that really sold me."

********************


The writer is the chair of the board of directors of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, a non-profit organisation of entertainment journalists that also organises the annual Golden Globe Awards

[jo]

Another media man who interviews Hugh Jackman regularly ( Ruben Nepales, a fellow countryman based in LA) writes a few more details, in relation to the video conference posted earlier. The article is intended for a Philippine newspaper --

entertainment.inquirer.net/371683/hugh-jackman-excellent-in-new-film-irons-clothes-practices-dance-routines-in-quarantine

Click on link to see new Hugh Jackman photo taken by Mr. Nepales.

Thursday, April 16, 2020

Only In Hollywood
Hugh Jackman—excellent in new film—irons clothes, practices dance routines in quarantine
By: Ruben V. Nepales - Columnist
Philippine Daily Inquirer / 12:40 AM April 16, 2020


Hugh Jackman —PHOTO BY RUBEN V. NEPALES


LOS ANGELES—Hugh Jackman, who gives one of the finest performances in his career in HBO’s “Bad Education,” recently gave us a glimpse of his self-isolation life in these pandemic times.

Holed up in his home in New York with his wife, Deborra-Lee, whom he fondly calls Deb, and their two kids, the actor said via a video conference interview, “We are here and all healthy, thank God.”



“I’m not going to lie to you,” Hugh shared. “I did shave a little bit for this (laughs). This is the first public thing I’ve done in two or three weeks. Deb said, ‘You should take that beard off.’ But I don’t think my appearance is as important to me.”


He brought up Frank Tassone, the superintendent he plays in “Bad Education,” which dramatizes the true story of one of the biggest public school embezzlement scandals in US history.

The film was written by Mike Makowsky, who was a student in the Roslyn School District in Long Island where it all happened. Frank and his superintendent assistant, Pam Gluckin (an equally excellent Allison Janney), were found to be stealing hundreds of thousands from the school district’s budget. All discovered because of an investigative reporting by two intrepid student reporters (portrayed as one person in the film by Geraldine Viswanathan).

In the drama directed by Cory Finley, Frank is depicted as using the school’s money like it was his personal account, from paying his dry-cleaning bills to his extravagant lifestyle, including keeping a male lover who was his former student (Rafael Casal as Kyle).


“For Frank, appearance was very important,” Hugh said. “He was quite open about that. He said he’s representing the school. One of the things that came out was that he spent $30,000 a year on dry cleaning, which he defended right up to the end.”

We told Hugh that on this afternoon, he himself looked good, with the late New York afternoon sun giving him a glow. “Thank you,” he said and added with a laugh, “Maybe I do care about appearances.”

Asked about his routine while confined at home, watching TV with the family, Hugh began, “We sit down in the family room and I annoy the kids. I do the ironing while I watch TV. The kids sit around or they ignore us—they’re 14 and 19. I am certainly watching more TV than I normally do.


Hugh wanted a breather before he starred with Sutton Foster in a Broadway revival of “The Music Man,” which is scheduled to open in the fall. The coronavirus slowdown made Hugh’s break all the more possible.

He explained, “Before all of this happened, people asked, ‘What are you doing next?’ I said, ‘I am going to take six months off because I will be on Broadway for at least 15 months. I did the tour around the world last year. I spent a lot of time away from home. So I already planned for this time to be as quiet.’ People said to me, ‘We don’t believe you. You’re going to pick up a film.’



“Now, we are all forced into that (self-isolation). So, I’m actually enjoying it, just being with the family.”

The versatile actor admitted that he is also rehearsing his “The Music Man” dance routines at home. “I would be lying if I said I am not dancing in my living room a bit because we did a little workshop back in February. I was with the musical director today on FaceTime for an hour going through the whole score.

“It’s clear to me that a little bit of work keeps me sane. We start rehearsals June 29, hopefully. I thought, I have to be ready for that. So let’s say, a quarter work and the rest is simple, hanging out. A lot of cooking, which my kids aren’t that thrilled about, but Deb is thrilled about it (laughs). My cooking has about a 50-percent hit rate. Quite often, I cook and then the kids go, ‘Oh great, can I order Postmates, dad (laughs)?’”

The actor acknowledges that he is fortunate. “I am so blessed that I’m allowed to stay at home while doctors, nurses, firemen, police officers are working out there on the front lines. The rest of New York is probably like a lot of the rest of the world. It’s quite tranquil and bizarrely empty. It feels like a postapocalyptic movie—New York City with no one around.


“However, people are waving to each other. People seem to have more time. The optimist in me hopes that will continue, that there will be a shared sense of what is most important, and hopefully, that’s what will come out of this.”

He shared what helps him in these stressful times. “I have done meditation for 25 to 30 years. It has helped me a lot because I worry mainly for my kids. And also just that pervasive anxiety. I don’t want that to impact them too harshly.

“This thing has hit the entire planet. Everyone has been forced to stop and really look at things. I do think that this is an opportunity for us to reach beyond our habitual lives that we had been living. We have to think globally, instead.”



Hugh Jackman with Geraldine Viswanathan (top photo) and Allison Janney in “Bad Education” —HBO
Back to “Bad Education,” Hugh said he did not meet the real-life figure Frank Tassone. To portray the superintendent, Hugh said, “It’s all public record. I actually hired a researcher. I had reams of material, newspaper articles. There are hours of video of him talking about the incident, talking prior to the incident. He was a very public character because of his position.


On what attracted him to “Bad Education,” which was based on Robert Kolker’s 2004 New York magazine article on the embezzlement scandal, Hugh answered, “First of all, the fact that it was true, but I like more the gray areas of humanity. In the end, a lot of people did something very bad and went to jail. They stole public money—$12 million. It was the largest theft in school history.

“But what interested me is that slippery-ness of truth. What starts as something so small and justifiable can snowball into a $12-million thing. And they will somehow justify it to themselves.

“This film is also the coming-of-age story of the girl (Rachel, played by Geraldine Viswanathan), who is actually an amalgamation of two characters in real life. But imagine the courage it took for 15-year-old kids writing in a school paper, to actually uncover a scandal of this size.

“Frank was without a doubt the number one [superintendent] in the country. I do know that he was told that it would be totally within his rights if he took $10,000 a month from the ATM because of the amount of work he does. Things like that. So, in his head, he’d be going, ‘OK, I’m the best in the country. I have a doctorate degree from Columbia. If I went to Wall Street, I’d be earning $20 million a year.’

“This is on record—when he was convicted and someone told him, ‘You stole $2.2 million.’ He said, ‘No, that’s not true. I stole $1 million.’ But the $1.2 million was money that he gave back to teachers in terms of like, ‘You are doing an amazing job. I’m going to send you to Poughkeepsie for the weekend.’ Or, he would put on a lobster lunch. In his way, he somehow justified it.”



On how his own education in Australia shaped him, the son of Grace and Christopher John Jackman, who was a Cambridge-educated accountant, Hugh replied, “My dad always preached education, education, education and never forget your family. So, no matter how busy or stressed you are, make sure that everyone in your family is OK. Keep learning at every turn and that will give you the proper way to go forward. That was an amazing advice.

“I had a great acting teacher. Lyle Jones passed away just three months ago in Australia. I think he was 91 when he passed. He was really the rock of everything that I learned as an actor. He said the secret to acting is breath, breath, breath, being present, in the moment, just following that breath, being alive.”



We asked what Hugh knows about Frank Tassone these days. Frank served about three years of his maximum prison sentence of 12 years and was released from prison in 2010 for good behavior.


“The last I heard when we were filming was he’s online as a tutor,” Hugh said. “At $50 an hour, he can tutor you in just about anything. He is living in the Bronx, in his family home that his parents had. That was about a year ago. Part of me always feels a little mixed about this because everyone makes mistakes. But this is a cautionary tale, and that’s why we’re telling it.”


On portraying Frank—Hugh gives a nuanced, three-dimensional portrait that is his finest performance in recent years—the actor said, “He’s a very tragic character because he had everything going for him. He was a brilliant educator. But he put on so many masks and fronts.

His image was so important to him that he was creating lie upon lie. Of course, it all came crumbling down in the end. He had it all, really. I find the whole story heartbreaking.”

Frank claimed he was a widower, but it was discovered that he had a domestic relationship with a man—two men, as shown in “Bad Education.” “He had a picture of his wife on his desk, and he wore the wedding ring,” Hugh said. “He would talk about that all the time.”



Toward the end of our chat, Hugh reflected again on the pandemic crisis. “You know the saying, ‘Humans plan, God laughs.’ I am guilty of it, too. Somehow, this situation has made everyone step back, look at plans that we obsessively create, and take notice of other people and their plans.

“The only thing that we can really rely on is community and being there for each other. And that sense of community has made us a lot stronger. This is a world pandemic, everyone’s in the same situation. I can’t think of any time where something has gripped the entire planet at the same time. So hopefully, we have a chance to come together.



E-mail: [e-mail]
Follow him at: twitter.com/nepalesruben[/]

[jo]

New photo posted from the newspaper article ( Philippine Daily Inquirer) -- not sure if this is a recent photo, though.

[/quote]

[jo]

You'd think the 2 previous articles already covered all of Hugh's thoughts...this time there is more focus on Bad Education and his film career -- an article from someone who seems to have seen BAD EDUCATION at TIFF?

Hugh Jackman on His Closeted Con Artist in ‘Bad Education’ and Turning Down ‘Cats’
IN CONVERSATION


Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Photo Getty

The acclaimed actor (“Logan,” “Prisoners”) opens up to Marlow Stern about his riveting turn in HBO’s “Bad Education,” ongoing flame war with Ryan Reynolds, and much more.


Marlow Stern
Senior Entertainment Editor
Published Apr. 16, 2020 4:43AM ET


It feels like a lifetime ago but before the COVID-19 pandemic, the impeachment of Donald Trump, and Megxit, the hottest movie on the festival circuit was Bad Education.


A based-on-a-true-story black comedy centered on a pair of comically corrupt administrators—played by Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney—who stole more than $15 million from the Roslyn, New York, school district, the film incited a fierce bidding war following its September premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. HBO emerged as the winner, shelling out a reported $20 million for the rights, a film fest record.

As the tirelessly devoted superintendent of the school district of Roslyn, a tony enclave on Long Island, Frank Tassone (Jackman) was considered a pillar of the community. He lunched with his students and advised them on their futures—which were incredibly bright, with many going on to attend elite institutions like Harvard and Yale. Heck, he even hosted a book club for the school’s parents. Little did they know he was living a double life, embezzling $11.2 million from the district and splurging on fancy suits, homes, and lavish trips to Vegas and the Caribbean. Oh, and he wasn’t even a widower as he’d so convincingly claimed but in a domestic partnership with a man.


Directed by Cory Finley (Thoroughbreds), Jackman delivers one of the most layered performances of his career as Tassone, a man consumed by greed and social façade.



Jackman, who’s self-isolating with his family in his New York City apartment, rang me to discuss his exciting new turn in Bad Education (premiering April 25 on HBO), the “battle” many of us face over sexuality, and whether he’ll don the claws again as Wolverine.


How are you handling this strange time of self-isolation?

Well, first of all, I think some gratitude that my family are all healthy—that’s the prevailing feeling I’m trying to cultivate to people who are out there doing all the work and allowing us to be at home. Apart from that, just trying to keep things as simple as possible and be together as a family, the four of us.


I know you’re big into your body. How are you managing to stay swole during this time?

To stay what? I don’t understand!


Oh, “swole” is a slang term for ripped, jacked.

Ah, got it! [Laughs] I do some workouts. I have a trainer who’s on FaceTime, so I do that. I’m lucky to have a rowing machine. Other than that, I’m just dancing in my living room.


What are you dancing to in your living room?

I’m dancing right now in my living room to Music Man. We did a workshop right before everything shut down, so I have a few steps that I’m dancing to. So it’s for The Music Man.


There have been some embarrassing celeb moments during the pandemic—like the “Imagine” video, which I’m sure was well-intentioned but people took issue because it was all these rich famous people in front of mansions breaking into song to, I guess, help “heal” the country. What do you think celebrities’ responsibilities are during this time?

I think basically just to support the people who are doing the front-line work. I’ve certainly had a lot of calls from people in government and that kind of thing to just encourage people to stay home—so those types of messages. And I think the more those messages are received from different sources the better, just in terms of well-being. You never know how the message is going to be received, but I think messages of hope and kindness really help. I did a video about washing hands early on and left the tap running for 20 seconds while I was washing, and got all these angry comments like, “Turn the tap off!” and I thought, you know, that’s a great bit of feedback. Everything is about learning and doing our best, and if you have a platform, it’s about enforcing that sense of community and how we get through this.


I really enjoyed Bad Education and am wondering how you nailed the Strong Island accent.

[Laughs] Jess Platt, my dialect coach. I haven’t done a film without him—except for Australia, of course—for 20 years. I’m someone who can get to 80 percent of an accent sort of easily, but it’s that final 20 percent that really makes a difference. He was on set with me yelling and screaming, and he’s originally from Brooklyn, so he’s around the area and knows it well.


With The Front Runner and now Bad Education, you’ve tackled political scandal, corruption, and the media in fascinating ways. Have you been influenced to explore that by the current atmosphere—particularly concerning Trump?

No, that’s not it. Why I get attracted to roles has a lot to do with the filmmaker, the character I’m playing, and the script. Until you mentioned that, I hadn’t put them in the same basket at all. I’d heard about The Front Runner from Jason [Reitman], and he’s such a brilliant filmmaker, and I’d read the script for Bad Education and it felt like two or three genres in one, so I didn’t know how we were going to pull it off. So I watched Thoroughbreds by Cory Finley, and I was 20 or so minutes in and remember I turned to my friend who was watching it with me and said, “Oh, I’m doing the movie.” It was about the character, about doing something I hadn’t done before—I think something that audiences wouldn’t expect me to do, with some twists they hadn’t yet seen from me—and I’m fascinated by human nature. It’s an amazing true story about a high-status person in the community going completely off the cliff, and somehow, him and 26 people who went to jail all convinced themselves they were doing something that was OK. How does that happen? How does that lie build on itself? And also, how people are not exactly what they seem.



It’s strange the ways people convince themselves into thinking that what they’re doing is OK—in this case, I’m doing so much for the community so I deserve this.

All of us in different ways are guilty of pretending things are OK because it suits us—even if it’s not morally right. I think everyone in the college bribery scandal… that was a slippery slope. It all probably came out of a misguided love for their kids and wanting to give them the best they can, so you see it in many different aspects of society. We see it everywhere.

It’s a battle that most of us face in our everyday life. It starts off as a teenager when you’re trying to get a boyfriend or girlfriend or someone to like you, and you’re like, OK, I’m not going to try that part, what’s going to work for me?



The film makes you think about how educators are compensated, and in these pandemic-stricken times, people have been paying more mind to what is considered an “essential” worker and how society compensates them.

I’ve thought about this a lot. You look at actors like me who, in certain movies, get paid ridiculous amounts of money, and the ethos is, Oh, this is due to market forces and what the market drives, and if you’re not worthy you don’t get it, but it’s astonishing what is happening, where people at the top are getting paid exorbitant amounts while people at the bottom’s wages are stagnating. And here we are in a situation where we’re truly valuing what is actually “essential.” We’re really valuing nurses, teachers, doctors, firemen and women, garbage collectors—all these people who are out there working we’re valuing, and they’re people who I think we’ve neglected for many years. This is something we’re all going to have to look at. The idea of, Well, the market dictates that and it’s not a moral issue is going to get questioned.



On a lighter note, the “eat the fuckin’ sandwich” scene with Allison Janney, where she’s shoving a pastrami sandwich in your face, is hilarious. And that very much looked like an unscripted laugh on your part.

[Laughs] Ah yeah, it was! By the way, I’m almost positive that was the first thing we’d shot. I’m a massive, massive fan. We’d done rehearsals together, but when we got out there, I mean, she is absolutely wicked… and naughty… and fun… and hysterical… and absolutely brilliant.


Were you two engaged in a mini-competition of who can go the most Long Island?

[Laughs] No, I think she wins the accent war!



An interesting facet of the character is how he’s deeply in the closet and forced to maintain this fiction of being straight, even concocting a story about being a widower, which can’t be healthy and must eat away at you.


On a bigger issue, what the movie’s about is appearances—who we are and the mask we put on. For Frank, how he was perceived and judged by people on-site was very important, and he justified that as being a part of his job, how he needed to project being upstanding to represent the school district in order for it to get to No. 1. In 2004, if you remember, Marlow, and I talked at length about this with my friend who’s a lawyer and is gay, he said, I’m telling ya—2004? I’m a partner now and it’s fine, but in 2004, in a legal firm, you weren’t out and proud. There was a feeling that you wouldn’t become partner, or make it to the top. So in that way, I can understand why he did it, but what it was signaling was Frank’s desire to appear to be something that he’s not—in all forms, in order to be successful.


And by the way, it’s a battle that most of us face in our everyday life. It starts off as a teenager when you’re trying to get a boyfriend or girlfriend or someone to like you, and you’re like, OK, I’m not going to try that part, what’s going to work for me?



As far as your ongoing online flame war with Ryan Reynolds goes, how did that start?

How did it start? It’s gone back so long now… God, this is a classic sign where your feud has gone too long, where you don’t even know why or how it started! [Laughs] I met him back on Wolverine, and I used to ream him because I was very close friends with Scarlett [Johansson], and Scarlett had just married Ryan, so when he came on set I was like, Hey, you better be on your best behavior here, pal, because I’m watching, and we started ribbing each other that way, and then it all escalated with the Deadpool thing and him calling me out, and trying to manipulate me through social media to do what he wanted. [Laughs]


And he got you on your wedding anniversary, so are you now currently in the lab planning a retaliatory strike?

I try to limit it to five hours a day, planning retribution. I’ve found in the past that it just gets unhealthy if it’s more than five hours of obsessing over how to get Ryan Reynolds. But five hours is good and healthy and keeps me strong and ready. [Laughs]


I know you and director Tom Hooper have a close relationship, and I enjoyed your performance in Les Misérables. Did you turn down a role in Cats?

Umm… yep.


Who were you going to play?

You know, Tom rang me early on because we did Les Mis together, and there were a couple of options there based on availability and time, and I really… yeah, I just wasn’t available at the time.


Seeing what transpired, are you glad you made that move?

I’m in the theater, man, and I don’t want to be in the business of bashing people—or jumping on bandwagons. I haven’t seen it, and Tom Hooper’s one of the great filmmakers we have.


You were great as Wolverine—particularly in Logan, which was such a nice coda to the character. Now that Disney and Fox are merged, it does seem like there are a lot of possibilities for the X-Men universe to expand in ways it couldn’t before.

Totally. Honestly, Marlow, if seven years ago that had happened I’d be like, “Oh yeah!” but I knew it was the right time for me to leave the party—not just for me, but for the character. Somebody else will pick it up and run with it. It’s too good of a character not to. It’s kind of like, you’re on your way home and your friend rings you and goes, Oh, dude, a new DJ just came on and the music is awesome, are you going to come back? And you say, Sounds good but… no. They’re fine with someone else.


It’s the 20th anniversary of X-Men, too. It’s been quite a career ride since then, and just getting that role must have been tough, because you were going up against Russell Crowe, Viggo Mortensen, and Dougray Scott, who had already been cast.

You know what, it is! That’s absolutely right, this July will be the 20th year in release. That’s crazy. But I had no idea about any of that. I did a casting call that thousands of people did around the world, and believe I was put in the mix early on. Dougray Scott got the part, Russell turned it down—that’s the second role I’ve gotten that Russell’s turned down. He’s been very good to me, Russ. The other one was Australia. But I actually got the part nine months after I’d first auditioned for it. I only went back and auditioned again after Dougray got caught up on Mission: Impossible 2, so I had no idea who was going for it nor did I expect to get it. My final screen test, I remember going and my agent going, Hey, this is going to be great because the head of the studio is going to see it. That’s why I thought I was doing it! I never thought I was getting the part. I had no idea it was going to happen.

Marlow Stern
Senior Entertainment Editor

@marlownyc

[e-mail]

Re CATS - did he turn down the role of RUM TUM TUGGER??!! ( Sigh!)

I remember about Scarlett and Ryan at that time when they were filming ORIGINS! Hugh publicly gave his blessings to that union

Sad that it didn't work out for them.

His Living Room looks twice or even more in size compared to the Winter Garden stage - LOL! He must dance together with Dali


Jo