Famke Janssen talks about her new movie, and her Bond girl role

Famke Janssen, who played Xenia Onatopp in the 1995 James Bond film "GoldenEye", talked to FemaleFirst about her new film and the legacy of being with Bond...

What attracted you to Hide And Seek?

Robert De Niro. Simple as that. It seemed like a pretty cool thing to do to put his name on my resume next.

I try not to have high expectations of people because it just sets you up for disappointment, but it’s great to work with actors who are that talented and accomplished.

De Niro has a reputation for immersing himself in the role I think most of those stories are exaggerated. That’s certainly been my experience when I’ve worked with people who come with that sort of baggage. He couldn’t have been nicer or friendlier.

Hide And Seek is a scary movie. Did it frighten you when you saw it cut together?
Yes it did scare me, actually, but it doesn’t quite have the same impact when you’ve been involved in making it. I love scary movies and The Shining and Don’t Look Now are two of the best.

What scares you in real life?
[Laughs] Really bad make-up and bad plastic surgery. There are a lot of examples of the latter, but let’s not mention names.

Do you have any of the usual phobias, like fear of spiders or heights?

I’m not keen on spiders, but I like heights. I’d love to jump out of a plane, but not bungee-jumping. I imagine that would be painful because you have to go back up again.


You got your first big break in the Bond movie GoldenEye in 1995. Did you worry about being typecast afterwards?

At the time I had nothing to lose, so I didn’t hesitate. I just had to make sure I worked really hard afterwards.


There’s a bit of a stigma attached to being a Bond girl, isn’t there?

I suppose so, but I’m the example that there doesn’t have to be. Everybody gets typecast in movies, but you have to make wise choices. I’d say around 90% of movie casting is about the way you look, so you have to fight that. If producers had their way, I’d only be in action films, but I’m interested in a more varied career than that.

So how do you manage your career?

The key is to mix it up. I like to go from mainstream movies to more artsy films. I don’t sign on for the money. Maybe I should, but I don’t. There’s always a good reason for doing something. Some of my choices are based on the directors, others are based on the actors

There’s some pretty physical stuff towards the end of Hide And Seek. Did you sustain any injuries?

I got hurt a bunch of times. We were really struggling in that water and one of the characters is choking me. The only way to do is just to go for it, otherwise it ends up looking phoney. It wasn’t pleasant, I can tell you. It took about a week to film that scene and I ended up hurting my head and getting bruised, but at least they heated the water for us.

Any plans for another X-Men movie?

We’re hoping to start the third one in spring. I can’t wait. The movies are hard work, but the cast is great and we have a lot of fun. Unfortunately Bryan Singer isn’t doing this one he’s busy making the new Superman film. It saddens me that he won’t be on board because he did such an incredible job. He made great movies rather than silly popcorn flicks.

You started out as a model. What was that like?

I found it difficult being objectified 24 hours a day, and that’s not the nicest feeling. People dress you up, tell you where to stand and what to do you don’t have any creative input.

You’re in the second series of Nip/Tuck. What’s your role?

I play a life coach who’s completely insane, but I’m not going to say anymore, otherwise it’ll spoil the surprises.

Would you ever consider plastic surgery yourself?

I’m not a fan of it. I hope I can be strong enough not to get involved in all that. It just makes people look weird.

You learned lapdancing for the film Made. How was it?

It’s kind of liberating it makes you more comfortable with your body. The funniest thing was seeing how silly men are about the whole thing. They think the girl is only dancing for them. I have friends who have gone back to the same dancer time and time again and they say ‘I can tell she’s really into me’. The dancers are really good at making men believe that.

Is it true you hate cooking?

I don’t know how to cook and there’s so much work involved you have to buy the groceries and prepare them. I like it when people cook for me, or I’ll just order some take-out.

Thanks to `Goldeneye` for the alert.

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