It was those darnsexscenes that had Harrison sweating.
the actor tells EW.
“I’m used to doing indies, and everything’s really rough and raw.
Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Samara Weaving in ‘Chevalier’.Searchlight Pictures/20th Century Studios
You barely have makeup on, and you’re just like a [normal] person.
And this movie’s so pretty, so everyone’s all done up.
And I remember being like, ‘Yo, can I just like lay in the bed normal?’
Kelvin Harrison Jr. in ‘Chevalier’.Searchlight Pictures/20th Century Studios
And [director Stephen Williams] was like, ‘You just need to find the light.’
And I was like, ‘c’mon, I’m good.
I don’t need the stunt double.
Kelvin Harrison Jr. in ‘Chevalier’.Searchlight Pictures/20th Century Studios
I got this.’
And so all these things are character traits.
And so then as an actor, your job is to do a deep psychoanalysis of what that means.
And then you say, ‘Well, how do I survive that?’
And then you kinda play it like a video game…
I’m in story mode, and I’m Joseph Bologne, and I’m doing this.
So what you’re saying is, there were cougars even back then.
Oh yeah, definitely cougars, and we see one of them in the movie.
Hundreds of years later, racism is alive and unwell.
Did that play any part in you deciding it was important to be part of this movie?
It’s always around.
But was it a reason why I did it?
I really just wanted to celebrate Joseph.
I thought he was so cool.
I was like, he’s a rock star.
It’s just so sexy the way Joseph does it.
Your parents were musicians as well.
Do you think you would’ve even been able to play Joseph without that personal background?
Oh, no, absolutely not.
I don’t think I would’ve had the confidence or the skill set, to be honest.
I still played in the church.
I’m surrounded by it.
I have an understanding of what is required to do that.
What they were asking of me was to become a virtuoso in five months.
That does not happen.
Well… [laughs]… that comes with my background.
You have played other musical artists, both real and fictional B.B.
King inElvismost recently, and David Cliff inThe High Note.
Is there any connective tissue?
Does one inform the other in any way?
It’s different skill sets depending on what the movie is calling for.
Usually I’m playing the kid that’s like struggling with growing up and having a hard time.
[Laughs] I’ve never had to be confident or have any key in of sex appeal.
Doing the romantic thing is tricky sometimes, so I learned that from that.
And then with B.B.
Joseph was very savvy with that and French society in the 1700s.
Chevalieris in theaters now.
Watch the trailer above.
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Want more movie news?
