'The Interview': Sean Penn Let Himself Get Away With Things for 15 Years. Not Anymore.
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is Andrew Ross Sorkin, the founder of Dealbook. Every year, I interview some of the world's most influential leaders across politics, culture, and business at the Dealbook Summit, a live event in New York City. On this year's podcast, you'll hear my unfiltered conversations with Gavin Newsom, the CEO of Palantir and Anthropic, and Erica Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk. Listen to Dealbook Summit wherever you get your podcasts.
From The New York Times, this is The Interview. I'm David Marchese. Sean Penn's new movie, One Battle After Another, is tough to pin down. Written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and co-starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tiana Taylor, it's about radicals on the run in an America that looks very much like our own. The movie is politically charged, and it's also spiked with moments of weird humor, anger, and a lot of heart. I think it's gonna cause all sorts of reactions. Which makes it a perfect fit for Sean Penn, because the actor is also, in his own way, a kind of provocateur. He's always willing to stir up strong feelings and make things happen. He does that in his acting, of course. He's won Academy Awards for his work in Mystic River and Milk.
He does it in his occasional, somewhat gonzo journalism. And he's also done it as an outspoken advocate for his liberal political views. That swaggering approach to life has caused more than its share of skeptical eye rolls in his direction, but it is hard to doubt Penn's commitment to world affairs. The best proof of that is his long-running humanitarian aid group called CORE, which lends on-the-ground help in places like Haiti, Sudan, and even here in the United States. I spoke with Penn a few weeks ago at his home in Malibu. We talked in a room surrounded by personal memorabilia, ranging from photos of family and his famous friends to an impressive and frankly daunting collection of knives. His big dog wandered in and out of the room and the smoke from his cigarettes lingered in the air.
He was, I gotta say, exactly what I'd been hoping for. Sincere, funny, a little crotchety, self-aware about his own grandiosity, and, as always, unafraid to let it fly. Here's my conversation with Sean Penn.
So, we're ready to go? Are you ready? Sure. Do I need to give a spiel beforehand? You know basically what we're doing here, right?
Let's find out as we go.
So, can you just explain to the audience where we're doing this interview? I would call this your man cave or the John Penn version of Elvis's jungle room. HQ. HQ.
When I'm not on my feet, I'm in this room. When my girlfriend is not in town, I sleep in this room. It's the room in my house where I feel most comfortable. But it is also a room in process of curation. All of my personal and family stuff, there's some in here. And I am not 45. I'm 65. And I can forget things that are impossible to forget.
What is Sean Penn's new movie about?
And I look around the room and I go, I knew that guy. Or I was in that place at that time. So it's a room that in its own way, it's like if someone had a lot of post-its to remind them where they put their keys, which makes me very happy.
So I wanna start with something that I think about a lot. You're a politically involved person. You made a documentary about Zelensky. You help run a humanitarian aid organization. You're fully aware of the challenges we're all facing right now. Given that, what makes you decide to take time away from focusing on addressing those challenges to do a movie And then do you ever wrestle with the utility of making art right now?
This is going to go a little sideways, but maybe in a good way. In a way, I'd always kind of felt intuitively that it's all exactly the same thing, whether it's the acting or working with core, or I do a lot of woodwork, whatever the various kinds of things are. What happens hopefully over time is that the utility or like what I want to turn this into a conversation about is the discussion of what one does, what their purpose is, right? What's our purpose? Your work as an actor is exactly the same job as your work as a craftsman or a welder or a core representative.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–3:35
2
What is Sean Penn's new movie about?
3:35–6:30
3
How does Sean Penn view his role as a provocateur?
6:30–9:48
4
What motivates Sean Penn's humanitarian efforts?
9:48–49:14
5
What insights does Sean Penn share about his character in the film?
49:14–52:17