Louis Theroux: Celeb interviews are extra worrying than gritty documentaries
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ouis Theroux stated interviewing celebrities entails “a sort of performance” which he finds extra worrying than engaged on a documentary of a gritty nature, which he describes as “oddly relaxing”.
The documentary-maker, 53, has just lately delved into the world of showbiz – interviewing celebrities for his Grounded podcast collection recorded throughout lockdown and for his six-part Louis Theroux Interviews BBC Two broadcast.
His newest mission, titled The Louis Theroux Podcast on Spotify, will see him interview 9 celebrities in a “free-wheeling chat”, together with Bad Seeds singer Nick Cave and US TV star Jennette McCurdy.
Theroux, who has had a 25-year profession exploring subjects from the world of neo-Nazi cults to the Church of Scientology, informed the PA news company: “For me, it is a chance to do something that uses different muscles. I came off making documentaries of a relatively gritty nature.”
He continued: “I will say it still feels more stressful and I would say probably harder work for me doing these (celebrity) interviews than it does going out to some weird religious group or a mental hospital or even some area of life that feels perhaps dangerous or deprived because that’s an immersive experience.
“Often times it can be oddly relaxed because you’re just swept up in the actuality of what happens.
“When you’re interviewing a celebrity, there’s a sort of performance that it requires from me, where I have got to be the maitre d’ for the encounter and keep things on track.
“I have to do a lot of research to make sure that I get the most value out of my time with whoever it is, that means I have to be fully prepared and focused and on point.”
He additionally stated the celebrity-focused materials meant he didn’t should journey as a lot so he can spend time together with his three youngsters, who’re rising up, and his spouse – TV producer Nancy Strang.
The new podcast, which launched on Tuesday, will see Theroux interview stars from the world of leisure together with Shania Twain, Amelia Dimoldenberg, Craig David, Tan France, in addition to Nile Rodgers, Samantha Morton and Ben Elton.
He stated: “The first one that will go out is Shania Twain and that was obviously a thrill, I’m old enough to remember the 90s and early 2000s when she was just the biggest thing in pop music.
“She both looked incredible, her videos were amazing, her songs were absolutely ubiquitous, incredible voice and alongside that is an extraordinary story of growing up very impoverished, being abused by her father and just her whole positivity that she’s kept every step of the way.”
Theroux additionally spoke about his interview with Chicken Shop Date creator Dimoldenberg, following his viral look on her channel final yr the place he recalled a rap he discovered whereas filming an episode of Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends in 2000 which turned a preferred dance pattern on TikTok.
The track Jiggle Jiggle amassed greater than 70 million international streams from its look on TikTok after DJ and producing duo Duke & Jokes set Theroux’s rap to a backing observe.
He stated: “We didn’t record any new rap content but we did basically talk a lot about the weirdness of Jiggle Jiggle. Amelia is extraordinary and she’s had an incredible couple of years.
“She just goes from strength to strength with her Chicken Shop Date content and her red carpet interviews.
“But nevertheless, even though I’d met her a couple of times, on and off camera in the last year, I had never sat down with her for a really long in-depth chat and to find out who she is away from the chicken shop was a thrill and hear where she’d come from, what (are) her dreams her insecurities.
“That’s sort of the heart of the whole project is finding out that amazing talented people like Nile Rodgers or Ben Elton grapple with many of the same anxieties and insecurities that we all do.”
Theroux stated he does a whole lot of analysis on every movie star, studying and watching all of the related materials but in addition overlaying the “offbeat stuff” so the interview “doesn’t feel too predictable”.
He used Morton for instance, who had starred in movies by “famous legendary directors” together with Woody Allen, Steven Spielberg, Lynne Ramsay and Neil Jordan.
“But I also wanted to make sure I watched (the film) John Carter, which was one of the biggest box office flops of all time, and just gave me a chance to talk about something she hadn’t been asked about before.
“Sometimes it’s finding that little moment of the unexpected,” he stated.
Theroux described his chat with Queer Eye star France as a “special pleasure” having not seen the present earlier than his interview analysis.
He stated: “It’s those times in the course of doing your job, you are brought into a person’s life and work, who you wouldn’t have been thinking about otherwise, or might not have known about and so it’s a huge spur to my journey of discovery of things that are out there that I might have overlooked for whatever reason.
“Tan France used to work as a flight attendant, which I’d never seen him interviewed about, so I managed to talk to him about that and I think he ended up quitting because he had a bad experience with one of his passengers.
“Craig David lived for two years at Terminal five Heathrow at the hotel there.. you’re an internationally famous DJ, pop star, songwriter, why were you living at Heathrow Airport at Terminal five.
“He said he just liked it, found it relaxing, but that’s extraordinary.”
Theroux stated his “wish list” of podcast interviewees included Sir Elton John, Beyonce and Tom Cruise.
“I’d want a couple of hours with Tom Cruise and I’d want to get into Scientology and his relationship with the head of Scientology. The film stuff is interesting but there’s also a lot of vulnerability there that I think he hasn’t ever really spoken about,” he stated.
The Louis Theroux Podcast is on the market to stream now on Spotify, with new episodes touchdown each Tuesday, with a second collection confirmed to observe.