At the Critics Choice Awards, Jesse Eisenberg shares an update on his upcoming projects with THR, including 'Now You See Me 3.' Plus, he jokes about his relationship with his 'A Real Pain' co-star Kieran Culkin.
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00:00Congratulations on all of this campaign success. Do you read reviews or how do you kind of approach all that side of things?
00:09You know, so my background as a writer is in theatre and so reviews are very touchy in theatre because the reviews come out on opening night and you still have the run to do.
00:19And so in theatre it's kind of etiquette to not talk about the reviews but you always have a sense of what they are.
00:25You know, people come in depressed or people come in and hug you.
00:27And so I've been on both sides. I've had plays that were hits and I've had plays that were not well received.
00:32And so I have a really complicated relationship with reviews.
00:38With movies it's a little easier even if they don't like it because you made it a year ago.
00:42You're probably in production on something new.
00:44And so for me with this movie, A Real Pain, like the first movie I made which came out two years ago, probably to the week, was not that well received.
00:53And I know what they said and I tried to learn from it.
00:57So it's like the benefit of reviews, I guess, if you're going to read them?
01:01It's also the benefit of like, because I write pretty quickly, I can always have something ready to go before the movies come out.
01:08So like my new movie that I'm doing now was written before A Real Pain was at Sundance because I was panicked that it wouldn't be well received.
01:17So it's kind of defense mechanism and it's living with complete fear every day and enjoying nothing has allowed me to kind of continue a pace.
01:27Well that sounds good.
01:29So how are you kind of approaching the acting versus the writing kind of breakdown at this point?
01:35Are you wanting to do both or are you kind of focusing more on one or the other?
01:39I feel like it's so hard to get a job in this industry.
01:42Like I'm standing on a line with the most successful people in the industry and I guarantee you if they were all being honest they would say I worry all the time about my next job.
01:50And so, I mean, that's kind of the way I think.
01:53So I'm so happy to do anything.
01:54Like I just finished shooting Now You See Me 3, which I'm an actor in.
01:58It's a big, like unbelievably fun, entertaining Hollywood movie.
02:02And now I'm writing and directing and, you know, acting in a movie that I wrote that's about a musical.
02:08And I'm just trying to stay as busy as possible because I have such low expectations for my own success that I assume if I stay busy I'll at least, you know, be able to have relationships and get lunch.
02:18And, I mean, Kieran is a good one to kind of start things off with.
02:22Do you have any kind of dream people that you would like to work with or write something for?
02:26No, I mean, my new movie stars Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti, my favorite actor and actress of their respective generations, etc.
02:37And, you know, I pinch myself when I think of them doing the parts.
02:43What has it been like seeing Kieran kind of get so much attention for this role?
02:48Especially after he kind of tried to back out, right?
02:51Yeah, listen, I would say I'm so proud of Kieran and I kind of am.
02:55But I don't really ever feel like I was his boss because on set he would make fun of me all the time and not really do what I asked him to do.
03:03And so while I feel so happy that he's receiving all this wonderful notice and he deserves it and he's a genius performer and it was like the most exhilarating thing I got to act alongside of, but I don't feel like that's my boy.
03:14I feel like, oh, he's probably going to shove that award in my face.
03:18Well, I mean, I don't know what to say to that, I guess.
03:24Yeah, you got me.
03:26I've also, one of the great benefits of Kieran winning all these awards and working on Glen, Gary, Glen Ross in New York is that I get to accept them for him.
03:33And so in a way I get the taste of winning, you know, when I come, when I get my runner-up plaque.
03:40Well, luckily you're getting plenty of acclaim too, so that's good.
03:44Yes, we're all spreading it.