Guy Pearce is the first to admit that he never wanted to be a movie star.

"I didn't have that sense of ambition," Pearce, 57, tells Business Insider in his crackling Australian accent. "I just wanted to work as an actor. On the outside, you think you want fame and big Hollywood movies; none of that is how I function."

Yet Pearce has dealt with fame for close to 40 years across two continents thanks to his wide array of memorable roles, which date back to his late teens when he was a heartthrob on the 1980s Australian soap opera "Neighbours."

Even then, being famous was disarming.

"'Neighbours' was a great experience, but the fame side of it was hard work," Pearce recalls. "Coming out of 'Neighbours' and not getting the work I wanted to get but still getting chased down the street whenever I went to the shopping center, the two things messed with my mind."

Pearce finally caught a break when turned his soap star image on its head to star as a drag queen in 1994's "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert," a role his then-agent tried to talk him out of taking. Three years later, he would make his way to the United States to play the by-the-book detective Edmund Exley in "L.A. Confidential" and break into Hollywood. He's gone on to star in over 50 movies, including Christopher Nolan's mind-scrambling neo-noir "Memento," the Australian Western "The Proposition," and Ridley Scott's "Alien" prequel "Prometheus."

Though Pearce is definitely famous, it's now on his own terms. Unlike the Hollywood stars who bring the same persona to every role, he's never played the same type of role twice.

This time, he's digging into his dark side to play Harrison Lee Van Buren, a wealthy industrialist with a sociopathic edge in Brady Corbet's award-season contender "The Brutalist," in theaters on Friday.

Pearce says he's drawn to fully-formed characters, and in reading Corbet's script about the epic journey of immigrant architect László Tóth (Adrien Brody), the Van Buren character "jumped off the page."

"I do my best work when I don't have to go back and create something," Pearce says. "Like an orchestra member who turns up, and there's the score, and you play the score. That's how acting should be."

For BI's latest Role Play interview, I caught up with Pearce — who was dressed in the casual, non-famous attire of a black t-shirt and blue jeans — at the A24 offices in Manhattan to talk about why he wasn't initially interested in acting in America, why he's never worked with Nolan since "Memento," and how "Iron Man 3" made him amenable to doing blockbuster movies again after an awful experience on 2002's "The Time Machine."

On being told playing a drag queen would ruin his career and auditioning for 'L.A. Confidential'

You found fame in Australia with "Neighbours" in the late 1980s, then followed that with a few Aussie movies, and then "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" came along. Was there any hesitation, coming off the fame of "Neighbours," to play a drag queen?

Well, I didn't sit there thinking things were good after "Neighbours." When I finished "Neighbours" at the end of 1989, I couldn't get a job to save myself. Nobody wanted to put the guy from a TV soap in their movie. So I wasn't riding a good wave.

"Priscilla" coming around, [director] Stephan [Elliott] said this at the time, he thought it was a fun joke to stick a guy from the soap in a dress. And that was fine with me. There was no question in me doing it.

I remember one of the agents at this agency in Sydney I joined after "Neighbours" told me, "I suggest you do not do this movie, this could ruin your career." And I was like, "Nope, I'm absolutely doing this, it's a fucking great script." So that was luck that I held my ground. And I'm still with the agency, but that agent left. 

So when "L.A. Confidential" came along, were you finally at ease about your career? Was your goal to get work in the States?

No. No. I never had any desire to get to America. I just thought, if I'm going to be out of work, why am I going to be out of work in America? I'd rather be out of work in Australia. What happened was I went to America to promote "Priscilla" and my agent said you should meet some agents in LA. And I said, "I'm not trying to work in Hollywood. I barely can work in Australia. Why would I try?" She said, "Meet this one agent." I said fine.

We met and I got along great with him, his name is Chris Andrews. He said, "I'll represent you." I said, "Fine, but I'm not coming over here and doing pilot season, I'm not going to do that. I don't have enough money." He said, "Come stay at my house." So I came back in 1995 a couple of different times and auditioned for stuff and would stay at his house, and that's how I got "L.A. Confidential." 

What was the audition like?

When I first went in, it was just a reading on tape. ["L.A. Confidential" director] Curtis [Hanson] wasn't even in the room. In fact, it was the last audition I did in late 1995 while I was in LA, so fight after I flew back to Australia. In January, Chris calls and tells me they want me to come back and do a proper screen test. I was like, "No, I'm not fucking flying back."

So Curtis called me and said, [speaking in an American accent] "Guy, I think you should come back." So basically, he had already decided, but he needed me to do the screen test so he could prove to the studio that I was the right guy. But he couldn't say I had the role. I showed up, and it was almost like shooting a scene; it was on a dressed set, costumes; they cut my hair to look like Ed Exley; it was a crazy thing. 

And during filming people would come up to me and say, "You got this off of 'Priscilla'? How did Curtis see you as Ed Exley in that role?" Turns out Curtis never saw "Priscilla." It call came from that first reading on tape that I did. 

How close were we to an "L.A. Confidential" sequel?

At a certain point, Curtis called me and said, "Just so you know, I'm talking to ["L.A. Confidential" author James] Ellroy about specifically writing a sequel." It would have been ten years later. And he wanted me to be involved. I told him I'm on board, no question. And Russell [Crowe] would return as well. Curtis' whole thing was it needed to be the same team, Warner Bros., me, Ellroy, Russell. It was a no-brainer for me. That got developed to a certain degree and then Curtis got sick and sadly passed in 2016. 

On why he hasn't worked with Christopher Nolan since 'Memento'

If the myth is true, "Memento" is kind of the opposite of what happened on "L.A. Confidential." Instead of the director calling you, you called the director. 

Well, I had always read these stories about directors saying how committed actors were to landing a role: "They slept on my porch, I knew he was the guy." I remember reading these and thinking, "Does that really work?" So I read "Memento" and really loved it, I met with Chris and then I watched "Following." I was really locked in and wanted to do it.

So I go to my agent, Chris, and I tell him, "I think I should ring Chris Nolan just so he knows that I'm really keen to do this." So I did, and I said, "I'm really sorry to do this but by all accounts this seems to work in this town, I'm really keen to do your movie, I would really love to do this." And in typical Chris Nolan fashion, he just said, "Well, okay, thank you for letting me know." I just felt if other actors are in the running he should know I really wanted to do it. 

I believe actors like Charlie Sheen and Alec Baldwin were also in the running.

I have no idea. I remember Jeff Goldblum was in the mix, and Brad Pitt was the first ask. I felt, this script is so good I'm going to lose this to a name actor, I have to put my hand up. Also, I was cheap. 

Are you surprised you haven't worked with Nolan since?

We nearly worked together a couple of times, but there was an executive at Warner Bros. who admitted to my agent that I was not someone he believed in and ever wanted to work with, so he was never going to work with me. And I'm glad we found that out because, for a while, it was weird that I could never get another job at Warner Bros.

But we found out because Chris offered me a role in "Batman Begins." This was at a time when he wanted Bruce Wayne's mentor to be around the same age as him. So I flew to London to see Chris, and by the time I landed, he was told that Warner Bros. was never going to employ me. So I get there and he goes, "Hey... do you wanna see the Batmobile?" And we went out to dinner and I flew home just puzzled.

I have no idea why this executive felt this way, he supposedly told Chris, "I don't get Guy Pearce, I'm never going to get Guy Pearce, I'm never going to employ Guy Pearce." So that never happened. 

Then Chris talked to me about "The Prestige." He was talking to Jude Law and I about it. And next thing you know he went and made it with Batman [Christian Bale] and Wolverine [Hugh Jackman]. [Laughs.] But, again, Warner Bros. was involved. And listen, if I can only work with Chris Nolan once in my life, I'm fine with that.  

(Ed note: WB and Nolan did not respond to BI's requests for comment.)

The job that made him swear off studio movies until 'Iron Man 3'

2002's "The Time Machine" was the first and only time you were the lead in a major Hollywood blockbuster. After that you didn't make a studio film again for years. How did your experience on that movie shape your career going forward?

I definitely realized that I wasn't cut out for the studio world. 

Did that leave a bad taste in your mouth?

Absolutely. I just wanted to get back to what I felt comfortable doing. I just felt like the studio world was too big for me. I remember one of the executives telling me three or four times on that movie, "You know, the time machine itself, that's the star of the movie." And not that I needed anyone to pump up my ego, but I just remember a couple of times going, "Okay, yep. Got it. No worries." It was difficult.

Right after doing that I went and reshot the ending of "The Count of Monte Cristo." So at that time I was fried and I had enough of Hollywood. I was a pretty horrible person to everyone around me because of exhaustion. So I realized I'm a character actor, I'm not that guy. So I took a big step back. 

Who was more fun to play, Peter Weyland in "Prometheus" or Aldrich Killian in "Iron Man 3"?

I think Aldrich Killian was probably more fun. I mean, Peter Weyland was hard work because I was literally wearing an exoskeleton and five hours of prosthetic makeup. 

Did you know what the hell was happening in "Prometheus"?

I think the movie is brilliant, but I'll say, if you don't get what's happening in the first five minutes then you're lost for the rest of the movie. And I had the benefit of listening to Ridley [Scott] talk about it before we started shooting.

I loved it, but it was a tough experience physically. I couldn't sit down because of this metal frame thing. So between shots they would just lean me against the wall. 

But with both of those roles, them being on big Hollywood movies, by then, I had a big rethink about how to function. Aldrich and "Iron Man 3" was an opportunity to kind of dip my foot back into the water of the studio world. The pressure isn't on me. It's a good character. So I got to do what I want to do in that world.  

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

More from this series

• The moment Luke Wilson knew 'Old School' would be a hit: 'There were kids high-fiving in the parking lot'
• Billy Bob Thornton ad-libbed his famous 'Friday Night Lights' speech after being betrayed
• David Duchovny had a very specific idea for how to make his 'Zoolander' cameo funny

Linda Cardellini had been patiently waiting for the chance to play somebody terrible.

After three seasons embodying the sweet, passive Judy Hale opposite Christina Applegate's hotheaded Jen Harding on the Netflix comedic thriller "Dead to Me," the actor, 49, was ready for something new.

"I was like, 'Well, won't it be fun if I can be a real jerk?'" Cardellini tells Business Insider.

She got her wish thanks to "Dead to Me" creator Liz Feldman, who dreamed up the role of Margo in her newest Netflix dark comedy "No Good Deed" with Cardellini in mind.

The selfish, manipulative, and deliciously glamorous Margo is one of several people vying for a 1920s Spanish-style home in Los Angeles that grieving couple Lydia (Lisa Kudrow) and Paul (Ray Romano) put on the market, and she'll do just about anything to make it hers.

Sporting designer clothes, long nails, and a fake tan, Cardellini's Margo commands attention in any room she walks into, though the true extent of her cunning isn't made clear until later in the series.

It's exactly the kind of role Cardellini was longing to play, and she's grateful she could reunite with Feldman, now a close friend, for the opportunity.

"Who wouldn't want some incredibly talented person to be writing for her? It just is a dream," Cardellini says of Feldman. "She writes really challenging and good roles. Especially as a woman my age, it's just wonderful to have that."

For the latest interview in Business Insider's Role Play series, Cardellini reflects on how the heartbreaking cancellation of "Freaks and Geeks" changed her approach to her career, playing an unlikable character (and murderer) in "Legally Bonde," and the best business decision she ever made.

On the cancellation of 'Freaks and Geeks' and learning to trust her gut

Business Insider: You got your big break on "Freaks and Geeks," and I read that you passed on two other promising projects in favor of that show. Do you think your career would look different if you hadn't done "Freaks and Geeks?"

Linda Cardellini: That's a great question. I would imagine so, although that show didn't do well back in the day. It really didn't. Now, it seems like a success, but back then, it did not seem like that to a lot of us and to the general public. [Laughs.] We could have never imagined that people would still be able to watch it on demand anytime they wanted somewhere. That just didn't exist at the time.

So I do think that things would've been different if I had never taken on that role. I don't know how, but definitely it's one of my favorite roles that I was ever in and one of my favorite shows I was ever involved with.

I just can't imagine if I had taken one of the other jobs and then had to watch somebody for years and years and years play that role instead of me. Not that I watch it — I don't — but I think that would've always been a massive regret.

Can you share what the other shows were, for context?

They were shows that didn't make it, actually, funny enough. I had gotten a phone call from somebody at the network being like, "You really should look at those other two shows. They're much more promising." And luckily, they were wrong.

How did experiencing that cancellation early in your career impact how you viewed the industry? What did you learn from that disappointment?

That's a good question. It's interesting because I learned a lot from that. I learned in some ways to go with my gut about how I felt about a script because a lot of people told me I was wrong — not that they thought the script was bad, but they thought other things were going to move forward faster or better. And that, I don't know how or why, just didn't matter to me in that at that time.

That show spoke to me for different reasons. I was reading a lot of things about teenagers where they were super cool and they were doing things that I just didn't relate to. I related to more of the "Freaks and Geeks" version of being caught in the middle of not feeling a hundred percent comfortable in your own skin, not doing the cool things, and not having all the right answers. And also, the fact that there was something about her where she still loved her parents even though she was trying to get away from them was interesting to me.

What that also taught me is nothing's guaranteed. You can love something, you can have the best experience on set. Everybody, as we have all seen now, everybody's done so well. What a talented, fun group of people to be with. And then it could be canceled. So nothing's a given, but if you do good work, maybe somehow it comes back, and people care about it.

On the flip side of that, I also learned that maybe I'll be a little careful with my heart because I was so heartbroken when it was canceled.

There's a picture that I saw that you can tell from my face that I've been crying all day on the last day of shooting. Since then, I kind of realized, OK, things just get canceled. You can't do anything about it. I sort of guard my heart sometimes in terms of not wanting to get my heart broken again.

Pivoting to "Legally Blonde," you have a very memorable scene where we find out that your character, Chutney, is the murderer. What was it like filming that moment and having that big perm?

That was my real hair. I have straight hair, so every piece of it was curled, and it was a long process. I didn't mind. As ridiculous as it could look, I didn't have any vanity about that.

I remember going to see it in the theater for the first time because I had missed the premiere for some reason; I think I was working or something. I went with a friend of mine, and we were sitting in the audience, and when I came on screen, someone was like, "Ew!" in a full theater, and I thought, "Oh my God."

On one hand, my feelings were really hurt because it was a visceral reaction someone was having to me on screen. And then on the other flip side of the same coin, I was really proud that I was willing to have this crazy look on screen and that maybe I did gross some people out.

Well, you did the job. She's not supposed to be the most likable person.

That's right, thanks. But that was really fun. I got to sit in there and work with everybody, and it was a really high-stakes scene.

On the mixed reactions to the live-action 'Scooby-Doo' movies and Velma's sexuality being watered down

Another fan-favorite role of yours is Velma in the live-action "Scooby-Doo" movies. There's been renewed appreciation for them more recently, but when they were released, they didn't get the best reviews and the second one didn't perform as well. Did that affect you at the time, when the movie's performance didn't go the way people thought it would?

I loved the second one. Velma had so much fun stuff to do in the second movie. By now, I was aware of the process of you could love something and somebody could hate it. It's always just the way it's going to go. And also, if everybody hates something, you might find one person who loves it. People really love those movies, and they're typically people who are younger who loved them when they were kids, which, how cool to have that place in somebody's heart?

I had so much fun making that movie, both of them. I got to play a character who was extraordinarily broad, broad comedy, where I was a cartoon, which was really fun for me. I'd come from doing "Freaks and Geeks," which was very grounded, and we weren't even allowed to wear very much makeup and looked like real kids. And then on the flip side of that, I got to play something that was my favorite cartoon as a kid.

That's all you have at the end of the day, is the experience you have on set. The rest of it is out of your control. You don't know how things will be edited. You don't know if you'll make it into the movie or not, especially when you're just starting out. I've learned that the best thing you can do is have a great time making the movie and having the opportunity to do your art.

That's all I ever wanted to do since I was a kid, so the idea that somebody gives me that opportunity, I can't take for granted.

A few years ago, screenwriter James Gunn said that he wrote Velma as "explicitly gay" in the original script, but it got watered down by the studio, became ambiguous, and then she got a boyfriend in the sequel. Were you aware of the studio pushback at the time?

I was not involved in any of those conversations. I was aware of the intentions and some of the stuff that was in the script that later got cut, for sure. But no, I wasn't in on any conversations like that at all.

There were lots of things that got cut. I think that the original script had a lot more things that sort of pushed the envelope in a lot of different directions. And then it also had that Velma was gay, and I think that those were things that were in the original script, but then the movie sort of geared towards children more at a certain point.

On being part of the 'enormous' Marvel Cinematic Universe and pushing past rejection

A lot of people know you from playing Laura Barton in the MCU. And in the "Hawkeye" series, we got to learn a lot more about her. It's been a couple of years since we saw you in that role. Have there been any discussions with Marvel about bringing Laura back?

No, I haven't had any discussions. But I was lucky enough to be back with them on "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" and that was really fun.

There's nothing like going to one of those premieres. Any time I get to be involved with any of those, they're just so enormous and impressive and phenomenal. I finally took my daughter with me to the last one because I was like, she's got to see this because it's just an incredible experience, the fans that are there. It's really huge.

What's the best business decision you ever made for your career?

To stick with it. There are times that it's undoubted that you're going to hear no. You get a certain resilience to it, but it definitely hurts. So I think the most important thing that you can do is just stay with it, stick with it. Try to do the best work that you possibly can.

Having been in this business for decades now, it's really nice when the wonderful relationships you have with people work out and you get to work with them again, and you get to have something written for you, and you appreciate them, and maybe somebody appreciates you. That's the real stuff. You spend a lot of time with people at work and when you're able to surround yourself with people who are creative and kind, it's the best.

What advice would you give yourself when you were starting out as an actor, knowing what you know now?

That the fears you have are also part of the fun. Sometimes I tell kids, those butterflies you feel before you go onstage, what an exciting feeling. You're feeling some kind of danger, but you're not really in any danger. You're only in danger of somebody's opinion. And that can be scary, and it is. But what an exciting thing to be able to do, to put yourself out there and to be able to express yourself. So, it's OK to be afraid.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

"No Good Deed" is now streaming on Netflix.

Luke Wilson's experience filming Wes Anderson's 1996 movie "Bottle Rocket" was many things: his film debut, a family affair (his two brothers Owen and Andrew also starred), and the start of a long relationship with Anderson.

It was also a bit of a nightmare.

"I love this Bob Dylan album 'Blood on the Tracks,' and he's got this quote about it where people will say to him, 'Bob, I love "Blood on the Tracks,"' and he'll say, 'I don't know how people can get enjoyment out of something that caused me such pain,'" Wilson told Business Insider.

"I read that and thought that was really funny," he continued. "That's what rings true for me with 'Bottle Rocket.'"

The offbeat crime caper about a heist gone wrong wasn't a commercial success, but it did offer Wilson a crash course in the often frustrating business of movie-making.

"All we ever heard was, 'The studio doesn't like it.' 'They don't know what you guys are doing.' 'They don't like the dailies,'" Wilson recalled. "And me being like, 'What are dailies?'"

Nearly three decades later, Wilson, 53, is a seasoned veteran who's found his niche playing soft-spoken straight-man roles in comedies like "Blue Streak," "Legally Blonde," "Old School," and "Idiocracy."

For his latest role, Wilson brings his comedic chops to Netflix in Liz Feldman's new series "No Good Deed." Like Feldman's previous Netflix hit, "Dead to Me," the series is a star-studded ensemble piece that blends elements of comedy and thriller.

Wilson stars alongside Ray Romano, Lisa Kudrow, Abbi Jacobson, Denis Leary, and his "Legally Blonde" castmate Linda Cardellini as JD, a soap opera actor who is in a bidding war for a house he believes will solve all his problems.

It was exactly the kind of role Wilson knew he could chew on. "Depressed out of work soap opera star… I thought, 'I like the sound of that,'" he said.

For the latest edition of Business Insider's Role Play series, Wilson breaks down how he and his brother launched their careers after connecting with fellow Texas native Wes Anderson, auditioning for "Blue Streak" at Martin Lawrence's house, and his efforts to convince "Idiocracy" director Mike Judge to make a sequel.

On 'Bottle Rocket' and why he's never been competitive with his brother Owen

Business Insider: 1996 marked your screen debut in the indie classic "Bottle Rocket," which was directed by Wes Anderson and cowritten by him and your brother Owen, who also stars in it. What were your acting aspirations back then? 

Luke Wilson: We always really loved movies. For me, Owen, and our brother Andrew that was our focus. Me with my friends, it was talking about what movies are coming out this weekend, if they are rated R, how are we going to get into them? What theater are they at? Do we wait for a cool-looking guy in line to buy us tickets, or does one of us go to a G movie and then open the back door? When I think back on it, that was what hooked me. I would study TV Guide to see what year a movie came out, who was in it, just like how people study box scores.

And then you're suddenly on the big screen yourself.

Yeah. But not until Owen met Wes Anderson at the University of Texas did we get the idea that we were going to try to make a very low-budget movie.

That movie launched not just your career, but your brother's. What was it like going out for work while at the same time knowing Owen was also trying to start his career? Would you two audition for the same stuff?

I'm sure it happened occasionally, and who knows what happens with casting and directors, but Owen quickly went and did some big-budget movies like "Armageddon" and things like that. I was kind of doing indie stuff and smaller roles.

People always ask if we were competitive, and we never were. I always looked at it as we're from the same company, we're from the same family, and we love each other. We're not trying to hijack each other. 

On his favorite Wes Anderson movie and the moment he knew 'Old School' would be a hit

Out of all the Wes Anderson movies you've done — "Bottle Rocket," "Rushmore," and "The Royal Tenenbaums" — which is your personal favorite? 

The most exciting and interesting thing for me was "Tenenbaums." With "Rushmore," Wes was hitting his stride, but with "Tenenbaums," suddenly you're acting with Gene Hackman, Angelica Huston, Danny Glover, Ben Stiller, and Gwyneth Paltrow. All of a sudden it was all of these people and shooting in Manhattan, which to me was the most exciting. It seemed like things suddenly exploded. 

How involved were you with the costuming of your character in "The Royal Tenenbaums"? It's become so memorable. 

It was all Wes. I do remember we did have one battle. We're at this tailor, this little place in New York downtown, and I'm standing up on a wooden crate. The person is measuring me for this suit, and the cuff is getting higher and higher, and I'm like, "Can we get below my calf muscle, please?" Wes pulled me in a corner and dressed me down, so I had to just let it go. 

Out of "Legally Blonde," "Old School," and "Idiocracy," which one of those are you most shocked is still beloved today?

I was just talking to Linda Cardellini, and we certainly had no idea that "Legally Blonde" was going to hit. It's certainly not my milieu or the kind of movie I'm into — I saw "Election" and thought Reese was great and I wanted to work with her.

With "Old School," I'll never forget the test screening in the Valley. After it I walked out and there were kids high-fiving in the parking lot and repeating Will and Vince's lines. This is ten minutes after seeing the movie for the first time. So I kind of knew that was going to work.

But "Idiocracy" might be the biggest surprise. It seemed like such an odd, funny movie, and I like Mike Judge so much and knew him from Austin. Mike has such a great offbeat sense of humor, and I thought things were funny, but I didn't know if it would translate. And Fox wasn't really giving him the money for the effects and set pieces.

I'll never forget I was reading the LA Times before the movie opened, and I saw a small ad that said "Idiocracy," and only three theaters were listed. So I called Mike Judge, and he told me the studio dumped the movie. I was bummed out.

So I was so surprised when it became popular. It is the movie that gets brought up the most to me. Not just election time but over the years. It's really special because it was something that couldn't be denied despite a studio putting the hammer down on it. 

On sweating through an audition for 'Blue Streak' at Martin Lawrence's house and his idea for an 'Idiocracy' sequel

One movie that always sucks me in whenever it's on is "Blue Streak." Honestly, for how great Martin Lawrence is in it and a young Dave Chapelle, it's your work as the straight man opposite Martin that's the glue. Did you and Martin talk a lot between scenes about how far you were going to take the straight act?

I think I've done well with comics because I have such love for them. I have such admiration for stand-up comics. I mean, "You So Crazy" to me is up there with Richard Pryor's "Live on the Sunset Strip." It's just unbelievable. I really loved "Martin" the TV show.

I had just gotten into town so I did a read with the casting director, and then they sent me to a reading with Les Mayfield, the director, and things were looking good, but I had to go read with Martin. So, I'll never forget this: I drove to Martin's house, and I'm waiting outside his house just sweating. I walk in and read with Martin and he's got some friends with him, and Martin just starts laughing with his friends about the way I look and my voice. From then on we got along great. 

Sony is developing a sequel. Have they called you?

I know we've talked to them about it. Whenever I run into Martin we've always talked about a sequel. We have also tried to work on some different things over the years and they just haven't happened. He's one of my favorite people. But hopefully, Carlson will be there if there's a "Blue 2."

How in the world did you end up in "Jackass Number 2?" 

[Laughs.] I'm not so sure how I got in that either. Probably one of those things where I got a waiver jammed in front of my face and didn't know what I was signing. 

So you weren't buddies with those guys?

No. I didn't really know those guys. 

Here's the kicker, Luke. Your footage didn't even make the final cut. It's a deleted scene. 

Yeah. I don't really have much of a memory of that. I don't know why. [Laughs.] 

Do you think Mike Judge will ever do an "Idiocracy" sequel?

Oh, I always call Mike and tell him. He's always busy and always working on a script. But I've always told him, how about me and Terry Crews and Dax Shepard coming back to the present day. We see Terry's Camacho character become president, Dax's character runs a movie studio. I'm always pitching that to Mike. He gets a kick out of it. 

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

In more than four decades on screen, Billy Bob Thornton has played nearly every role imaginable, from a man trying to save Earth in "Armageddon," to a drunk thief in "Bad Santa," to a high school football coach in "Friday Night Lights," to a hitman on season one of "Fargo." But for his latest role starring in the Paramount+ drama "Landman," Thornton was tasked with a new, unique challenge: playing a version of himself.

It started when "Landman" creator Taylor Sheridan struck up a friendship with Thornton after the 69-year-old actor did a cameo in his "Yellowstone" prequel series "1883."

"He told me one night at dinner, 'I'm writing this series for you, it's called 'Landman,' and I'm going to write it in your voice, the character is essentially you,'" Thornton tells Business Insider, recounting the moment in his familiar Southern twang. "I thought that was intriguing."

In the series, Thornton plays Tommy Norris, a crisis executive at an oil company in West Texas. But Norris is certainly not a buttoned-up corporate type. Sporting a cowboy hat, worn jeans, and a tattered shirt with a cigarette usually dangling from his mouth, Norris looks like he's just come from some kind of confrontation. And often, he has.

The opening scene of the pilot episode finds Tommy with a burlap sack over his head as he awaits a negotiation with the Mexican drug cartel that owns the land his company wants to drill on. When the negotiations commence, he hits his combatant with a flurry of one-liners and profanity. It's an introduction to Tommy's signature blend of grit and charm as he peppers any interaction, whether it's with his ex-wife Angela (Ali Larter) or his oil tycoon boss Monty (Jon Hamm), with his sarcastic quips.

So this is the real Billy Bob?

Thornton ponders for a moment before answering.

"It's pretty close between this and the character in 'Goliath,'" he says of Billy McBride, the troubled lawyer character he played for all four seasons of the Amazon series. "But there's been a little in 'Bad Santa.' Some of the innocence in 'A Simple Plan' I still have because I have a childlike nature sometimes. I think there's 50 of me."

For the latest interview in Business Insider's "Role Play" series, Thornton discusses how a chance encounter with legendary director Billy Wilder changed his approach to the business, how "Landman" brought him back to the setting of one of his most memorable roles, and why he never wants to direct again.

On Billy Wilder telling him he was 'too ugly' to be a leading man and squaring off with Kurt Russell

Like many actors, you had to do a lot of different jobs to get by while starting your acting career. In the early 1980s, you had a stint as a caterer, and during that time, you encountered a very famous director who gave you some advice.

Yes. And you say my catering career, I think that lasted like two or three days. [Laughs.] But it was worth it. A friend of mine knew I was broke and he was working this party at some rich person's house for Christmas Eve. And because it was Christmas Eve, they paid you double. So normally you'd get $150 but on that night you get $300, which to me was like a billion dollars at the time.

I showed up to the party, it was a mansion out in Bel Air. After a while I found out this is Stanley Donen's [director of "Singin' in the Rain"] house. So I'm going around passing stuff out. Dan Aykroyd and his wife Donna were there, and years later, I told Dan I waited on him, and he couldn't believe it. Dudley Moore was playing the piano, Debbie Reynolds and her husband were there, and Sammy Cahn, who wrote for Sinatra, was there. It was star-studded but more old Hollywood, other than Dan. So I was impressed because I had read about these people.

I walk over with my tray to this short guy with an Austrian accent and he says to me, "So you want to be an actor?" And I said, "Yes sir, how did you know?" And he said, "Forget about it." I said, "What do you mean?" And he said, "Just forget about it. You're too ugly to be a leading man and you're too pretty to be a character actor." [Laughs.]

But he also said, "Don't wait on the sidewalk for these people to pick you, there's actors everywhere. Can you write at all?" I said, "Actually, I do write." He said, "That's what you do. Write and create your own characters, create your own stories, and make them yourself." And sure enough, that's what I did.

So after I talked to this older fella, Stanley Donen chewed my ass out for not mingling around with my tray. I go back to get more food and the bartender says to me, "What did Billy Wilder say to you?" And I was like, "What?" And he goes, "That was Billy Wilder you were talking to." I had no clue.

That advice brought you your first big break, which was writing and starring in 1992's "One False Move." But that also marked the first time you're on screen with Bill Paxton. You two would go on to star together again in 1998's "A Simple Plan." What was it about working with Bill that brought out great screen chemistry between you two?

Well, we hung out together in the '80s. He was one of my first friends out here. I used to hang out with him and a guy named Rick Rossovich, and Jeff Fahey; we all ran around town together. Also, we were both down from that way. He was from Fort Worth, I was from Hot Springs, and we just became natural pals.

In 1993's "Tombstone" you have a very memorable scene opposite Kurt Russell where you two square off in a saloon. What are your recollections of doing that movie?

I remember I ad-libbed a lot of the stuff at the card table. Like when I said, "This is like playing cards with my brother's kids." The dialogue on the page was okay, but it was pretty straightforward stuff. So I acted like a frustrated sour guy and just started saying stuff. When Kurt and I did the scene where he slaps me across the face and makes my lip bleed, it was brilliant what the stunt guy told us. I was wearing this derby hat that was really tight to my head. I had a blood capsule in my mouth. So what Kurt did is he hit the brim of the hat, and that way, I knew exactly when to pop the cap in my lip. So that's why that slap looks so realistic. It looks like he really hit me.

On his mistake of showing Harvey Weinstein his assembly cut of 'All the Pretty Horses'

In 1996, you got your huge break with writing, directing, and starring in "Sling Blade," which won you the Oscar for best adapted screenplay. It's released by Miramax Films, so now you're working with Harvey Weinstein and that leads to you doing "All the Pretty Horses" in 2000 with him. You have never been shy to talk about how that movie was ruined by Weinstein in post-production. Looking back, although what was released it's not the movie you set out to make, do you appreciate that it's at least out in the world?

Well, I was actually proud of the movie we put out. I thought it was a very good movie. All the stuff they have said about another cut being five hours long, that was never true. I made the mistake of showing them my assembly, where it was literally everything I shot. And I was doing it because I thought they would get where I was headed, and I prefaced it with both Sony and Miramax by saying, "Listen, this is the assembly; I'm cutting this down." The actual length of the movie is two hours and forty minutes, which is exactly the length of "The English Patient," which Harvey won an Academy Award for.

But also, they marketed "All the Pretty Horses" as like "Titanic," because that was the big hit then. I said, "Can we just not have a poster that has Matt [Damon] and Penélope [Cruz] all airbrushed." I actually showed them a picture of Matt and Henry [Thomas] and Lucas Black on horseback in silhouette going up this mountain. It was this beautiful picture. Are you kidding me? There's your poster. And they just went, "Mm-hmm." So I said, "Just don't make it look like the 'Titanic' poster."

Since then, you directed the little-seen "Jayne Mansfield's Car" in 2013. Do you think you'll ever direct again?

The stories that I write and want to tell as a writer and director in the movie business these days are probably irrelevant to people. With "Sling Blade," it hit during the independent film boom.

After that, I did one called 'Daddy and Them," which I love. It's one of my favorite things I've ever done, and that was a casualty of the argument over "All the Pretty Horses."

Harvey said, "I'll put your little movie you love so much on the shelf," because we made it right before "All the Pretty Horses." And sure enough, he put it on the shelf. Years later, it will play during the middle of the night, and people love it. So that really got to me, that experience on "All the Pretty Horses."

On ad-libbing his famous 'Friday Night Lights' speech

2004's "Friday Night Lights" is a beloved sports movie, and a big reason for that is the locker room speech your character, Coach Gary Caines, delivers. Is it true that you ad-libbed a lot of it?

That is accurate. And that speech has become a thing they play at college games, Jerry Jones played it on the Jumbotron at a Cowboys game. It's become a famous speech. I went to director Pete Berg and I said, "Can I go off the book a little bit?" There were lines that were in the script and some that weren't.

And you did this because the night before something happened to you.

Yes. I was very very upset and felt sort of bullshitted by someone. So I was just thinking about this thing and about the truth. And also the real guy who was the running back, Boobie Miles, was in the room. He played one of the assistant coaches. So when I saw him, I was pretty emotional about that too. I started the speech and I just winged it. It was exactly what I wanted to say.

That's one of the things people come up to me and say. They say, "That speech meant a lot to me." Me saying, "Don't worry about that scoreboard, if you can look at your friend lined up next to you and look in their eye and they know you're doing the best you can do," all that stuff was winged.

In the pilot episode of "Landman," you film a scene at the high school football stadium in Odessa, Texas, where you filmed "Friday Night Lights." What was that like?

It went up my spine. I walked out there and spent all that time there, and here I am again. I saw the field and it was the same. I ran into extras who were the children of extras on "Friday Night Lights." It was a great moment. I'll never forget it.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.