The name Peter Sarsgaard inspires a wide range of reactions from Wash. U. students. Many respond with gleeful praise, raving about his performance in dorm room favorite “Garden State,” or the incredible sympathy he engenders as Stephen Glass’s editor, Chuck Lane, in “Shattered Glass.” But an equal number of people either respond to the name with a blank stare or ask, “Wasn’t he that guy in “Good Will Hunting”?” (That was Stellan Skarsgaard, no relation.)
“I actually kind of like that” Peter recently told me in a phone interview, in preparation for his appearance at Graham Chapel on Thursday. “When you’re being recognized there’s a type where they’ve seen specific things that you’ve done that have moved them, and it feels nice. When it’s not specific, when they know you just from your name or for your wife, that’s when it feels sort of crappy.” Peter’s wife, the equally well-respected Maggie Gyllenhaal, could be heard over the phone in the background attempting to prevent the couple’s one-year-old daughter Ramona, from eating something she shouldn’t. “What is she eating?” he asked. When the response comes back “paper” Peter seems to shrug it off as any experienced father might. “Right. That’s my daughter. She’s putting everything that she can into her mouth.”
While playing the father seems to come naturally to Peter (he was able to finish the interview while watching “Annie”) so too does understanding the wide variety of characters he has portrayed throughout his career. “I always could play a villain; I always had that option, even though you quickly get bored with that.” As an actor, Peter is often cast in the more socially disturbed or disaffected roles, something that stems from his breakout role as the homophobic killer in “Boys Don’t Cry.”
“I’ve always had a strong sense of empathy with people, without any moral judgment,” Peter tells me. “From the girl in class showing off knowing the right answer, to, you know, the kid who comes to school and leaves road kill in your locker.”
Empathy is something Peter takes seriously. So seriously that it will be the subject of his speech in Graham Chapel on Thursday at 7:00. “I’m going to bring up the bonobo monkey and a couple of other things. They have more sympathy than most humans do.” He sees a lack of empathy in our society and feels his experience with it has been an important part of his life. Empathy is something he uses everyday in his work. “That (empathy) is my connection to acting. It allows me to play rapists and people like that, and even like characters that are socially acceptable that aren’t me.”
He also told me that he prefers working with first time directors as it allows him a greater ability to fight for the rights of the character. “You know the best thing is somebody who’s worked a long time and still listens. That’s very rare. Frequently a director just sees this person as part of the plot, so you’ve got to fight for their rights even if they’re the villain. You’ve got to fight for their humanity even if they’re Hitler.”
Sarsgaard lived in and around the St. Louis area until the age of 10, but returned to attend school at Washington University. “It was a combination of wanting to go someplace that felt homey to me, and wanting to go to a good school.” He has many fond memories of Wash. U. as a child, since he grew up near the University. “I went to Glen Ridge Elementary School, within walking distance of the campus. I went to go see foreign films at the University with a neighbor, who taught there. She was an opera singer.”
When he came back for college he still enjoyed the city, going to the theater in University City and eating toasted ravioli at Talyanya’s. He was not involved in the performing arts department while in school, claiming he “was lured into” forming improvisational group, Mama’s Pot Roast, “by this guy Michael Holmes.” Though he studied a variety of arts and sciences he never settled on just one. “I was a very curious kid and I spent a lot of time in the library watching, like, every single Andy Warhol film. I would always get sidetracked from my studies by something else, like, something I probably could have studied and received a grade for. I was just never cut out for academic life.” And while Peter never officially graduated, he feels very close to the University. Coming to speak at Wash. U. has long been on his mind: “It’s something I’ve really wanted to do. A lot of people try to pursue the arts, and it’s nice to have somebody come in and remind them that every once in a while it happens, and you can make a living.”
After graduation Peter quickly started booking jobs on television and in theater but acknowledges that many are not as lucky as he was. “It’s such a depressing job market out there and I think it scares a lot of people.”
Whether you need reassurance while looking for a job in the entertainment industry, or simply want to tell Peter he was great in the jewel thief movie, don’t miss Thursday night’s presentation.