Being an actor is a funny thing. Every kid in acting class dreams of being successful and famous- having their name in lights while starring in major blockbusters. But the reality of fame can be fare more disheartening, as a level of notoriety will prevent celebrities from being able to live normal lives. And now it appears that Star Wars: The Force Awakens did just that to actor Adam Driver. Playing the new villain in the most popular film franchise ever is quite the task, and it has now affected his ability to act in other projects.
Adam Driver recently did an interview with Vice about his new movie Paterson. Regarding his fame from playing Kylo Ren, he said it actually has begun to affect his other acting gigs, saying:
It's part of my job---as contentious as it sounds---to be invisible, to be a spy, to observe, live life, have failures, get things wrong, to have experiences. When people are suddenly looking at you, you can't help but become self-conscious, and you have to fight to be in your own world. Then you're also not taking in the world around you. It's challenging.
This actually makes a great deal of sense. While Kylo Ren is a role that most actors would kill for, it's not without flaws. In particular, it's preventing Adam Driver from being able to study human behavior anonymously- he's just too recognizable.
Adam Driver is one of many actors who enjoy doing character research by observing the world around them. In order to understand a new character's psyche, actors will often seek out similar folks in real life to observe; this informes how they will relate to and transform into the character. So when Adam Driver was preparing for his role as a bus driver in Paterson, he likely rode NJ Transit buses. There, he could see how the bus driver interacted with the riders, and vice versa. But with Driver now a household name through his work on Star Wars and Girls, this is easier said than done.
The above statement from Adam Driver speaks to fame itself. While our culture strives for notoriety, it's not always fun once you get there. After all, who wants to worry about being recognized while you buy gas or stop for coffee? As Driver says, it makes it a fight to just exist, and you can end up missing things around you.
This new level of fame doesn't seem to be setting Adam Driver back much. The breakout Girls star has been working a ton since he hit the scene, including nabbing a role in Martin Scorsese's upcoming Silence alongside Andrew Garfield and Liam Neeson.
You can watch Adam Driver's final season of Girls starting February 12th on HBO, and Silence on December 23rd.
