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Compiled by: Jack Foley
Q. Any misgivings at all about continuing with the franchise
after the first smash hit? Were you always on board?
A. Well, I didn't really have a choice, because the studio
had an option on me. Initially, I didn't really know what to think.
But it was one of those scenarios where, for the last year and
a half, whenever I was recognised when I was walking around, it
was as the guy who was in The
Fast & The Furious. I had kids coming up to me all the
time and the first question was technical, about cars, and then
it was 'is there going to be a sequel'? Then I met up with Reese
and Mr Singleton, which still feels like it was yesterday, and
they were both really cool. Originally I was bummed out a little
bit, cos I thought that these two guys had worked together before.
And I didn't know what the situation was, whether he had my interests
at heart, or just Reece's. But it took a couple of weeks and I
got in, I saw where John was at, and saw he wanted to make this
movie the best he could. He's competitive, just like I am, and
he wanted to best it. I had a really, really great experience
and I was glad that everything came together.
Q. After the first film, you bought one of the
cars. Now, after the sequel, I guess you can afford a few more
now? Have you been racing in between times, strictly legally,
of course?
A. No, the car I purchased is actually a Nissan Skyline R34
V-Spec 1. I'm on my fourth one. You guys are actually really fortunate,
cos you can purchase that car here. It's the Ferrari of Japanese
cars and mine right now is putting out just shy of 900 horse power
in the rear wheels. I spend a lot of time on the track, actually,
I love racing. I think most guys dream about being an auto racer
one day, and I had the opportunity to make some pretty substantial
contacts in the automobile world, and believe me, I've taken advantage
of it.
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Q. 2 Fast 2 Furious confirms you as an all-out action hero,
leading man, I just wondered, when Pierce Brosnan retires, would
you consider taking that role?
A. You obviously haven't heard me talk yet! [Mimicks, Bond,
James Bond].
Q. You describe yourself as an adrenaline junkie.
What did you do to get your kicks on set?
A. We did a lot of stuff. I got behind the wheel quite a bit,
which made it fun. I was a bit heated at one point, cos I thought
it was pretty clear that I was going to be driving whenever possible,
and John would have just went ahead and got on with it from the
get-go, but unfortunately, there is thing called insurance, and
they didn't like the idea of me being behind the wheel that much.
So it took a while before I managed to get behind the wheel.
But we got to drive around quite a bit. Whenever I got to work
with the stunt-men, I loved that. That was the best, even when
I was doing something that actors weren't particularly allowed
to do. For instance, when I was getting in the cars, I would look
over my shoulder and see the other stunt-men raising their eyebrows,
like, 'oh no, they're really going to let this kid do it'.
But I got to mix it up quite a bit and working with Tyrese, too,
makes it fun. In the beginning, for the sequence when we're fighting
on the ground, most guys in the industry would go for that sort
of thing, but one of the benefits of working with Tyrese is that
he's not a pansy; he's a regular guy, so we got to mix it up a
little bit too, which was kind of fun.
Q. What are the ups and downs of being so high-profile?
A. To be honest, things haven't really changed that much.
I'm getting a few more offers, and that sort of thing, but as
for being recognised and loss of privacy, I don't really experience
it that much.
I don't spent a whole lot of time in Hollywood. I show up there
for work, but when I'm not doing that, I'm usually hanging out
with my family, or doing the things I did when I was a kid, surfing,
etc.
So things haven't really changed that much, no joke; it's just
more offers and I get paid a little more.
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