LOS ANGELES, California—“Timberlake does steal a few moments with his awful Canadian accent,” Variety’s film reviewer, Brian Lowry, wrote about Justin Timberlake’s performance in Mike Myers’ “The Love Guru.” Timberlake plays Jacques “Le Coq” Grande, a Speedo-wearing, well-endowed French-Canadian hockey player. The movie is a comedy, so Justin’s attempt at a Quebecois is played for laughs.
In our recent press con with Justin, when a female reporter jokingly said that she was afraid to hurt his “male pride” by asking if that was the real thing or prosthetics under his Speedo, the “SexyBack” singer gamely assured her: “I’ve plenty of ego to go around. Don’t worry about it! ”
In “The Love Guru,” Justin portrays a Los Angeles Kings goalie who lives up to his “Le Coq” name to seduce Prudence (Meagan Good), the wife of the rival Toronto Maple Leafs’ star player, Darren (Romany Malco). When Darren’s performance suffers as a result, his team owner, Jane (Jessica Alba) hires Guru Pitka (Mike), a self-help specialist, to help fix the marital rift and motivate the Maple Leafs to win the Stanley Cup finals.
Asked why he accepted a film that required him to parade around in his swimming trunks, the performer who figured in the controversial Super Bowl “wardrobe malfunction” incident with Janet Jackson, replied, “Mike has his own type of comedy. Participating in that, you can get away with pretty much anything—and that’s how I ended up in a Speedo! ”
Right choice
“I have a man-crush on Justin,” Mike quipped in the film’s production notes. When we brought up the quote to Mike, whom we talked to in a separate interview, the comedian laughed and said, “Yes, I stand by that!” Teased that, for a change, Justin is the one wearing underwear and not him, Mike answered, “I made the right choice, didn’t I? Indeed, I’m always naked in my movies.”
The star of “Austin Powers” and “Shrek” was the one who recommended Justin to be the voice of Artie in “Shrek the Third.” He expressed his admiration for the comedic skills of the singer, whose appearance in the risqué “Dick in a Box” music-video spoof on “Saturday Night Live” made it one of the most watched digital shorts online. Justin won an Emmy for original music and lyrics for “Dick in a Box. ”
Mike also marveled at the many talents of Justin, who made news at the time of the interview by doing well in the US Open course at Torrey Pines in California: “Didn’t he play golf last week? He’s the guy with the Quebecois accent—the guy playing goal! I don’t think he really skated before, but he was like, ‘I can do that!’ I was like, ‘Yes, can you, bastard?’ Wow.” Mike joked, “It’s a little sickening to watch!” Then, he added, “But, it’s inspiring! ”
Master plan
Justin claimed he doesn’t have any master plan for his acting career. “Not specifically,” he stressed. “I just respond to the material. For instance, for ‘The Love Guru,’ I got a phone call from Mike. He said, ‘Read the script. I want you to play the villain in the movie.’ How do you say no to that? With the smaller drama films I’ve done, it was fun for me to express myself creatively, and not to have to worry about the pressures of the box office. It’s the closest thing to a hobby that I could possibly have! I really enjoy and love the process!”
Asked if his swing coach qualifies as the guru in his life, Justin replied, “Yes, Butch Harmon is my golf guru. I like to spend money—but not like that! Butch is great. He coached Tiger Woods for 10 years, and he coaches the top four players in the US Open, so if that says anything, he’s the No. 1 golf instructor in the world!”
About singing a Celine Dion tune in the movie, Justin explained, “We didn’t know what particular song it was going to be, but we did know that it was in the script. Jacques is a huge Celine Dion fan, so I knew at some point, I’d have to sing a Celine Dion song. I give much credit to Meagan Good for having been able to keep a straight face, because we had fun with it—especially to have Mike in the background with the rooster and everything. I had a blast! ”
“There are many,” Justin answered when asked if there are singers he would flip for in real life, just like in the scene in the movie with a Celine Dion impersonator. “I wish that I had a chance to see the late Donnie Hathaway sing live. He’s the first person I can think of. ”
Of singing with Madonna and being one of her producers in the “Hard Candy” album, the pop superstar said, “Working with Madonna is everything you think it is! It was great, cool, tedious and fun. We went down into the valleys, and we came out on top of a mountain. We had a good time. I’m very happy to call her a friend now. She’s really a special person!”
“I listen to everything,” the Grammy winner declared about what’s on his iPod these days. “I’m excited to hear Coldplay. I think Christina Aguilera is back in the studio, so I’d love to hear that, as well.”
Record producer
He shared the latest developments on yet another side to him: Being record producer. “I’ve been working for the last couple of months in the studio with Esmee Denters from Holland. There’s a band from Memphis that I signed. I have also signed Matt Morris, an old friend who was on a television show with me when I was a kid. I’ve been working with these artists since the beginning of the year. Since I finished the concert tour, I had time to do the film, ‘The Open Road,’ but other than that, I’ve been working in the studio. As a producer, it’s nice to be able to sit on the other side! ”
In “The Open Road,” Justin, who had dramatic roles in “Alpha Dog” and “Black Snake Moan,” tackles his biggest role, described by Variety as a “man trying to reconnect with his father (Jeff Bridges), a legendary athlete, as he struggles to get him home to his ailing mother’s bedside. ”
“It was a great experience,” he gushed over his costar. “Jeff Bridges is my favorite actor that I’ve worked with thus far! For someone who’s done so well and for so long, he’s still so committed, collaborative and giving. On the set, he’d ask me what I thought of his performance in a scene, like, ‘What do you think? Should I blah blah blah?’ I’m like, ‘I don’t know—you are Jeff Bridges! Do it how you want to do it.’ To be able to collaborate with people I admire, that’s what it’s all about! ”
During the interview, Justin was nicely dressed in a striped crewneck pullover, dress shirt, natty tie and pants. After all, the man has a clothing line: William Rast. “I’m heavily involved,” he stressed about his fashion line. “We’re going to launch our campaign this summer. Our first full collection for men and women comes out this fall. It won’t be as big, but we will eventually expand. I’m extremely happy with it! We really found our ‘language’ with Johan and Marcella Lindeberg. Collaborating with them has opened my eyes to the world of fashion!”
Eclectic flavor
He explained his line’s eclectic flavor: “I kept trying to zone in on one thing, but the truth was, I came from a generation that didn’t just like one thing. We listened to hip-hop, rock, soul and the classics. Look at me, I’m from a small town in Tennessee who got to travel the world and learn about fashion in Paris, London and Milan. That’s what the language is for William Rast—I would describe it as ‘American Southern heritage meets European innovation.’ ”
Pressed to comment on how age plays a factor in his dating preference now (he and ex-girlfriend, Cameron Diaz, had a 10-year age gap), Justin, who’s 27 and going out with Jessica Biel, 26, stated: “You just need to connect with a person. It’s not about why people go out on a date, or why age is important. It’s about confidence and connection, and how you communicate. Some people communicate better with others, regardless of age. That’s what it’s about!”
E-mail rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com and read his blog, “The Nepales Report,” on http://blogs.inquirer.net/nepalesreport.
