Did you always want to be an actor or comedian?I always did it as a hobby. I never thought that it would be a vocation. I thought that I would go into something along the lines of law to the point where I was filling out my law school applications and I had taken the LSATs and it seemed to be my destiny when I decided to give acting a shot. My ultimate goal was to make enough money (acting) to support a family and maybe be able to send my kids to college, but apart from that, I really had no huge plans of success.
Who or what inspired you?I always liked Monty Python. I am a big Peter Sellers fan. I am a big Allen Arken fan. They are the people who made me laugh the hardest and the people I sort of studied in a way. More currently, I think Steve Martin is great.
Do you have any doubts about your career choices? Are you worried about being overexposed?My goal is to become overexposed. In the next nine months, I want to pack in as much as possible and then disappear into a fiery wreck of a career. That is my ultimate goal. No really, I have had no master plan. I certainly had no intention of playing anchor people in three separate things. Up until this point, I have sort of taken any job I have been given aside from appearing in pornography, I have pretty much done anything that’s been handed to me. I guess at one point you become more cautious of your choices, but I’m really not worried. I just want to have fun with what I’m doing. I think I will know when people have had enough, and when I have as well. Believe me; I get sick of me as much as anyone else.
Do you have any plans for serious roles in the future?Not really. I don’t want to fall into that clichCB) of “I’m a comedic actor who wants to be respected and embraced as a dramatic actor or that I eventually want to direct.” Those are always things you find actors saying. If I can continue to work and get paid to work, I think I will be happy. I don’t have any ulterior motives to do Hamlet anytime soon.
What were you like in kindergarten?I don’t think I was a class clown. I was kind of quiet. One specific memory from kindergarten that I have was me walking along the edge of the sandbox and I fell, but I fell, like, on top of the sandbox with my legs kind of in a split, so I had to go to the nurse-I don’t even know why I am telling you this-with a cut, I got a boo-boo, on my private part. It was one of the most traumatic moments of my life, certainly up until that point, and obviously one that stayed with me. I think I was really, really shy as a little kid, and to a degree I think I still am. At a moment like that when you had to sort of reveal something about yourself and you don’t want to talk about it was very hard for me because I don’t think I was a very outgoing little kid. I think I became more outgoing when I would do little plays or appear onstage. I think I sort of came out of myself when I got an opportunity to do that, but when I wasn’t performing, I wasn’t the class cut-up.
How different is the real Steve Carell from the character you play in “The Office,” or in other movies?Well, I hope I am different from the character I play in The Office. I am probably closer to Brick Tamlin than I am to Michael Scott because I am kind of oblivious so that was not too much of a stretch for me. I am a wonderful human being. I am very generous, warm and loving and I’m a good father. I’m pretty much perfect and success has not changed me. I am very, very down to earth. (Laughing) I don’t know. I think I am kind of a normal guy. There has been no perceivable shift to who I am. I think I’m pretty much the same boring guy. As Stephen Colbert once described me in an interview: I am beige against a tan wall. I think that pretty much fits. I am pretty nondescript.
If you could do college all over again, what would you do this time around?You know what? I kind of liked the way I did college. I tried to take advantage of every sort of opportunity I could and I don’t really have any regrets. I did my fair amount of studying. I did my fair amount of partying. I played sports. I did theater stuff. I don’t know I kind of did what I was hoping to do. I don’t think I would have done anything more or less, and that includes studying, and drugs and sex. I think I did just about enough of each of them.
What is the funniest thing that happened to you in college?The first frat party I ever went to, I was not aware of the term “grain alcohol.” I was tasting this punch that was served up in garbage cans lined with plastic bags, so there was a lot of it. I thought, “Boy I really can’t taste any alcohol in this, so I’m going to have to drink a lot in order to get any sort of buzz.” The next thing I remember was rolling. I was rolling back to my dorm. I woke up in my bed the next morning in a bed covered with leaves and grass. I was fully clothed. I had bruises. I honestly don’t know what happened other than that there was vomiting involved and a lot of rolling. That was the last time I ever sampled grain alcohol. The thing that I learned is that you can’t taste grain alcohol, and that’s the key. So when you are having punch at a frat party, don’t be fooled by the lack of alcohol taste.
Can you recall the first job that you had that you really said to yourself “I have arrived?”I did a McDonald’s commercial where they were promoting triple cheeseburgers and I had three arms. So there was a guy standing behind me using his arm to help me eat the triple cheeseburger, along with my two, naturally, attached arms. I thought when I was doing that, “This is it. I am a complete and utter success because I have gotten a local McDonald’s commercial.” That seemed to me that there was no way I could achieve a higher goal, and you know what, frankly, it’s been downhill from there.
What about the waxing experience in “40-Year-Old Virgin?” Would you do it again?No. Did I answer quickly enough? I am glad that people thought it was humorous but I don’t know if it was worth it. It hurt so much more than I thought it would. I was being really cavalier about the process. People were giving me advice. I disregarded any sort of helpful hint. I thought, “You know what? I just want it to hurt. I want it to be real. I think that will be funnier.” Man, it was excruciatingly painful. My wife was fairly horrified by the whole look when I got home-the “man ‘o lantern,” as it has now become known as. No, I wouldn’t recommend it.
What single gem of advice do you have for old virgins everywhere?Um, boy, a single gem of advice? Keep…keep on truckin’? I don’t know. Even jokingly, I can’t even speak to middle-aged virgins. I have no idea what I would say. I would say I hope they enjoyed the movie, and that’s pretty much it.
Do you have a favorite line from the characters you have played?A few from Brick seem to keep coming back. “I ate a big red candle” seems to be a perennial favorite. There was one scene, I don’t even think it’s in the movie, but it was in the DVD as Brick. We are having a conversation and I drink a cup of coffee and I just say, “Oh, I burned the inside of my mouth.” That is probably one of my most favorite lines. And the whole exchange with Christina Applegate with “There’s a party in my pants and you’re invited.” That whole thing was improvised and it was discussed a minute or two before we did it. In terms of Brick, it was one of my favorite parts.
Would you say Brick was the favorite character you ever played?It was just such a fun character and so easy in the sense that I didn’t have to do anything. I could stand there most of the day, and then the director Adam McKay would say, “You know what Steve? At the end of this scene, just say anything. We will leave a space open, and just say anything you want to say.” So it was this huge amount of freedom to really say anything and it didn’t have to apply. It didn’t have to be in any sort of context. There was no rhyme or reason to any of it. Frankly, I just got to stand there and enjoy everybody else all day and I didn’t have a lot of heavy lifting to do.
Do you ever miss the good old days?No. The money wasn’t as good in the good old days. Here’s the thing: it’s all been kind of fun. I honestly don’t know how it could get any better than this. All of my past experiences have just been fun and exciting. Even the terrible things I have worked were fun, even if they didn’t necessarily turn out well.
