Hey y’all, LMD just had the pleasure of a chat with that up-and-coming girl on the scene, Miss Lucy Punch.  The British funny lady is surely looking at time in the nick for stealing every picture she can get her hands on, including Ella Enchanted, Being Julia and her raveworthy turn in Woody Allen’s You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger.  I’m thrilled to say that Miss Punch is up to her scene-thieving ways once more in Bad Teacher.

Dig it!

Bad Teacher

Lucy Punch

The Lady Miz Diva:  We met during the release of You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger.  How has that film changed things for you?

Lucy Punch:  It changed everything for me.  I hadn’t been working for a year and I got that job and in the year after that Tall Dark Stranger hadn’t come out at the time, so I still had to go into the rooms and fight for those parts, but I was being brought in because people were like, ‘Oh, she’s been in this Woody Allen movie.’  And personally for me, it also gave a lot more confidence, which had been waning.  Suddenly I had been, ‘Am I doing the right thing?  Am I good?’  And doing that movie…Yes, I’m so grateful.  I’ll probably be getting a Woody Allen tattoo.

LMD:  When did you first know you were funny?

LP:  I get told sometimes, “You know, you’re so funny,” and I’m not telling a funny story.  Or I’ve been in auditions when I was younger and being very dramatic and crying, and suddenly I’d hear snickering and they’re going, “That was hilarious.  You’re not right for this, but Lucy that was really, really funny.”  So, I think unfortunately, I’m unwittingly funny in trying to act serious, but I don’t have a lightbulb moment.

LMD:  When you started in England, you worked around some very funny people like Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders.  Who are some of the funny people who’ve inspired you?

LP:  You mentioned French and Saunders and I have all those videos and I absolutely worshipped them.  They really inspire me and I don’t really remember actresses that I loved growing up, it was really those two.  I did have the opportunity when I was at university; I got this job on a show with them {Let Them Eat Cake} and it was their only show that didn’t work because they hadn’t written it.  But I was practically mute the entire time we were working; I was in such awe.  I was also terrified to say something that wasn’t cool or funny.  I didn’t want to try and be funny in front of them.  I still do admire them so much and yeah, there’s no one else like them, so those two.

LMD:  Lucy, you’re lovely and could easily play romantic leads.  Are you more comfortable playing comedic roles?

LP:  I would like to play everything.  I would like to do it all; I like playing different characters.  I like reinventing myself or trying to and looking different.  One of the things I always think when I look at actresses who’ve had long and interesting careers, to me those actresses are character actresses.  Funny doesn’t get old.  And you can have a longer career if you are not the beauty.  I was never gonna get cast in those parts anyway when I was younger, but I’d rather be one of the ugly stepsisters than Cinderella.  Or I’d rather be the nurse than Juliet.  It’s more interesting to me, but I hope I get the opportunity to try everything.

LMD:  When you mentioned not having a lightbulb moment about when you realised you were funny, I wondered how hard you work on your facial expressions.  In every film I’ve seen you in, including Bad Teacher everyone comes away talking about how you have the most expressive face.  You quirk your lip in a scene and the whole audience is in stitches.  Does your face just register what you read or do you actually practise those expressions?

LP:  That’s funny you said that cos I was remembering this story.  I’ve never told this story before:  It was with one of my best friends and we were 18 and we were in Paris and Romeo and Juliet had just come out and we were madly, madly in love with Leonardo DiCaprio, and we were in a club in Paris and he walked in.  We didn’t know. What was he doing in Paris?  This friend of mine, she’s practically a supermodel and we sort of positioned ourselves and he sort of comes over and I’m sure he was coming over to talk to her, but we’re chatting away and I’m yapping on and he’s looking at me like this, *stares intently* and I’m like, ‘Why isn’t he looking at my friend?’ and he’s sort of just intoxicated.  And I’m like, ‘Oh my God, is this my moment?’  And he leans in really close and he goes, “You know what? You’ve got… ” And he’s getting really close and I’m waiting for him to go ‘… the most beautiful whatever.’  He goes, “You’ve got the funniest facial expressions.” So that was who first ever said that to me.

It’s not something I work on, I think I have an elastic face and it just happens.

LMD:  You have such a fearlessness; whether it’s what your face does or what the rest of you does in Bad Teacher, covered in God knows what, or sitting in a urinal.  Where does that courage to be silly and throw it all out there come from?

LP:  I don’t know.  I find as myself I can be rather nervous; but once I’ve got the part and I’m there, I have a very high embarrassment threshold.  I don’t get embarrassed, I don’t care.  And I find if I’m doing something as someone else, it’s such a release: It’s not me, it’s that other person, and I’m being totally outrageous and as that character I could do absolutely anything.  And I find there’s maybe an anarchic side to me that I could smash everything up; I could really behave terribly, or be awful, or be ridiculous, where in my own life I’m like, ‘Well, I ought to be a nice person and I want to be kind and well-mannered.’  So perhaps it gives me the opportunity to unleash it all.

LMD:  It’s therapy.

LP:  Yes! {Laughs}

LMD:  Well, speaking of things being in a whole other reality, what was it like for your character to battle Cameron Diaz for Justin Timberlake’s affections?

LP:  Ludicrous.  I think that’s probably why Justin was made to be as geeky as he was, because otherwise it was totally unbelievable that he would be interested in me over Cameron, and it remains a constant source of amusement.

LMD:  Well, your Amy was the inspiration for the love song, "Sympatico".

LP:  Yes, yes.  I love that song!  Of course in movies, everything gets edited; that song was a lot longer and it was just genius.  It was wonderful.

LMD:  I understand Justin wrote Sympatico, as well.  Is there anything the man can’t do?

LP:  I know.  Nauseating.

LMD:  Can you tell us about your upcoming film?

LP:  Yes, this film, Yellow.  Nick Cassavetes has written and directed it.  It’s quite a dark film.  Gena Rowlands is playing my grandmother, which is incredible.

LMD:  So is this the dramatic part you’ve been waiting for?

LP:  Yes, it’s a really little, teeny-weeny bit.  I’m just popping in and out.  It’s a pretty out-there character, it’s dramatic, still.  I’m really excited about that.

~ The Lady Miz Diva

June 20^th, 2011

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