|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In "Wimbledon," Kirsten Dunst plays a feisty American tennis star determined to win England's storied Lawn Tennis Championships. Along the way, she puts the moves on a has-been Brit, played by Paul Bettany ("A Beautiful Mind"), inspiring him as he competes in his final tournament. At the start of their first date, Dunst's character tells him she believes a little fooling around on the eve of a big match to be good luck. Although she insists she could never be that aggressive in real life, Dunst did hit MTV News' Corey Moss with a powerful opening serve in an attempt to steer the interview toward music instead of movies.
Kirsten Dunst: All right, MTV! So can we talk about music instead of this movie?
MTV: Sure. What are you listening to?
Dunst: Right now, I like Rilo Kiley, so I'm listening to their new record. And I'm the biggest fan of Rufus Wainwright, so I always have him in. And Patty Griffin, I love her.
MTV: Good taste. So getting back to the movie — your character makes the first move, and a rather forward one at that. Did you enjoy playing such an aggressive woman?
Dunst: It's probably all guys' fantasy to have a girl be that aggressive. Honestly, it's really difficult to be that person for me, because I'm not really like that. Maybe [I am] secretly somewhere [inside and] I'm trying to let it out. ... Working with Paul, who is so charismatic, is, like, off-putting sometimes, he's just way older than me — not way older, but you know, he just has a lot more experience — and so for me it was hard sometimes to feel like the one in control. It was difficult.
MTV: Did you play tennis before?
Dunst: I played a little when I was younger, but no, not really.
MTV: Wow, all the more impressive. Are you playing more now?
Dunst: Nope. As soon as the movie was over I stopped playing tennis. I hate to admit it. I really enjoyed it while I was doing it, but then afterwards I was like, "Now that I don't have to do it, I'll be lazy."
MTV: Did you and Paul ever play each other for fun?
Dunst: We never played each other in a game, but we'd always play against each other in our warm-ups and we'd set up little games.
MTV: Who was better?
Dunst: I was better at certain things and he was better at certain things. We each had our strengths, but ultimately he had more tennis than me in the movie, so he's probably more well-rounded, but I did really get a mean backhand, I have to say.
MTV: Did your interest in doing "Wimbledon" have anything to do with it being nothing like "Spider-Man 2"?
Dunst: I actually agreed to this three years before I made it and it just happened to fall in place after "Spider-Man 2." I personally like to have breaks in between movies, because it really becomes tiring after to go from one to the next, but I had a pretty light schedule in "Spider-Man 2," so I was OK.
MTV: There's talk of you making another movie with Sofia Coppola, who directed you in "The Virgin Suicides."
Dunst: All I can say, really, is that it's Marie Antoinette [the queen who lost her head during the French Revolution] and it's pretty awesome. It's gonna be really cool.
MTV: And you're working with Cameron Crowe now in a movie called "Elizabethtown." How is that going?
Dunst: It's been the best experience for me because I haven't worked in awhile, so it's been really nice to come to work. And I'm so happy to be there, and he's so great to work with, and it's so freeing on his set. And he plays music all the time. He knows how to set a vibe.
|
|
|
|
Photo: Universal Studios
|
|
|
|
|
