He’s started the Social Network and survived a zombie apocalypse. For this edition of INTERVUE, actor Jesse Eisenberg will wow us about his role in the upcoming movie, Now You See Me

It’s great seeing you and Woody on screen again since Zombieland. What is your working relationship like with him and has the chemistry evolved since?

JE: Yes, when I was working on Zombieland with Woody, I was very nervous around him because at the time, I thought I was nervous with somebody like that but now in retrospect, I realize that I was nervous because my character was nervous around him. So I was taking on the nerves of my character and its very disarming guide to let myself realize that. So working on this movie where our characters are rivals and competing peers, I didn’t feel nervous around him. I may be felt like comfortable and we had a really good time doing that because we were working as equals. We would try to improvise against each other so we would come up with ways to jab each other. Before each scene, we would write down different jokes that we might throw at each other and see how the other reacts. Woody takes his role seriously, like I do, but also like to bring his sense of humor to it. I would like to work with him more.

Speaking of jokes, is there any particular one you care to share?

JE: I don’t know what made it into the movie since I didn’t see the final product. What’s also funny is Isla Fisher. She’s like absolutely hysterical and the funniest person you could meet. She’s very quick and has a dark sense of humor. Her character used to be my assistant and she quit because I never promoted her. She was able to use her cunning sense of humor to insult me. I am sure some weird jokes between us made it into the movie.

Are there any plans for a Zombieland 2?

JE: There were but they decided to do a TV show instead.

Did you talk to any magicians while doing this film?

JE: David was the magic consultant in the movie. He was like my teacher and taught me the world of magic. The stuff he taught me was slight-of-hand tricks. The most helpful thing he gave me was giving me the deal of what his life was like. The character that I play would be practicing magic every day, 8 hours a day since he was five year old. Every single day, he would walk around with a pack of cards in his hands. All the time, he would not have a big social life because he would be practicing so much. I was able to understand what my character’s life would be like. My character thinks that “I am the best in the world.” David introduced me to a lot of magicians. I got to see who my character would be like. When I first read the script, my immediate thought was David Blaine who was a causal street performer. The director wanted me to be flashier with a little more attitude that Blaine. So, I was looking at Copperfield who was flashier but kind of seems like from a different generation.

You have played some interesting characters in your career from Columbus in Zombieland to Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network, how do you choose those right roles to play?

JE: Any time I play a role, I think of it as myself.

Now You See Me will amaze you in the theatres this Friday, May 31st

For INTERVUE, I’m Dean Rogers

About The Author

Dean Rogers

Editor-in-Chief/Entertainment Reporter

I knew early on that I wanted to take my place among the stars. One day, my mother saw me reading The Washington Post at a very young age. Who would have known that it would be the building blocks of my journey? Since that day, I dedicated my life to learn all that is learnable. I read everything from encyclopedias, to books, to dictionaries, to magazines. I’m also an avid consumer of television, with my favorite genre being game shows. If you’ve seen me on Who Wants to be a Millionaire or Wheel of Fortune, then you know that this interest has served me well!

My unique style of reporting began back in junior high school, when I started to chronicle the events that shaped my life. Whether it was the annual family vacation or the local science fiction convention, I shot numerous pictures and recorded my thoughts so I could truly appreciate the history. During my senior year at Friendly High, I wrote what was to be my first masterpiece, “Advanced Space Academy – A One Week Journey.” I sent the eleven-page article back to the U.S. Space Camp staff. The article was highly praised for being “one of the best written articles in the history of U.S. Space Camp.” From then on, I knew what I wanted to do for rest of my life — to be a reporter.

Since then, I have trained in Broadcast Journalism at Bowie State University (2008) in Bowie, MD earning a B.S. in Communications. I gained experience in news production and editing through field experiences with Bowie Community Media Corporation, Prince George’s Community Television, and Bowie State University Television. I also wrote scripts for a variety of quiz shows for over five years.

As a lifelong movie buff, I now see close to 100 films every year. I took this love of movies to the next step when I became a co-host for Eclipse Magazine TV in the fall of 2005. While at EMTV, I interviewed celebrities, worked red carpets, and attended a wide variety of movie screenings. In January 2009, I took a leap of faith and started my own entertainment news magazine, The Rogers Revue. Shortly afterward, my life-long journey of studying the silver screen and writing about what I learned finally earned me a place in the Washington Area Film Critics Association.

All of this has led me here, giving you the latest entertainment news for the DMV and the entire nation, and I am truly excited for whatever will come next.

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