His features have made him one of the most recognizable actors in Hollywood. Ron Perlman He was the protagonist and first incarnation of hellboy (2004), one of the Neanderthals of In search of fire (1981), the hunchback Salvatore in The name of the rose (1984), the beast of the television version of Beauty and the Beast (1987-1990) and tough biker Clay Morrow from Sons of Anarchy (2008-2013), among many other roles. For a month she has been in Donostia where she shoots There are no jungles left to return toa fiction with an international cast in which he plays Theo, who is called The Gentleman, a former US military man who seeks to water the streets of the capital of Gipuzkoa with the blood of three lawyers who have murdered Olga (played by the singer Natti Natasha), a Ukrainian prostitute whom Perlman’s character pays to chat. The actor was yesterday, Wednesday, filming in a luxurious villa in Miramon and during one of the breaks in filming, produced by Esto Too Pasará, he listened to the words of NOTICIAS DE GIPUZKOA.
Is this your first time in Donostia and the Basque Country?
Yes, it is a beautiful country, from any angle. The position of the city in line with the Cantabrian Sea and the mountains make it a very interesting place. The rain makes everything very green and it is truly magnificent.
What interested you about the ‘There are no jungles left to return to’ project?
Gabriel Beristain and I have known each other for 23 years. We have been partners in a multitude of projects, some that have already materialized and others that have been projected for the future. When he told me about this book and that he was thinking about turning it into a movie, he told me that he intended to change the nationality of the main character from Spanish to American. He told me with such passion the type of film he wanted to shoot, that I was already involved in the project.
What is your character like? What is your Gentleman like?
There are some characters for which it is necessary to do research and there are others for which the only material you have is that of the imagination that arises from reading the script. The Gentlemen responds to that second case, to what I get from reading and how I fill in the gaps in the story with my imagination.
Therefore, not everything is always in the script.
I found the questions and answers in the script, in the character’s relationship with his past, with what he fears. He met his wife when he was stationed at the Rota base, but she died at a very young age due to cancer. At that moment my character left the State, but at the beginning of the film he returns for a strange reason. All these elements are part of the story and it is with your imagination that you complete the character’s arc: why he is here and what is the evolution of his relationship with life and death, given that he is already a man elderly.
You are now 73 years old and have had a long career. Have you learned, like your character, to relate to life and death in a different way?
I feel freer. I have let go of issues that are not useful, such as worrying about the bullshit that others think about me. What people think about me or my work no longer worries me. I’m very free to be myself, to pursue the things that I’ve concluded are really important in life, and to push away bullshit that others, both in the industry and outside of it, love.
And do you also feel free to bet on other types of films?
No. My relationship with my professional life is identical to when I was young. What has changed are the circumstances. Now, when they offer me a script they usually offer me the character of a grandfather and 40 years ago they would have offered me the character of the kid (laughs). Typically, the roles I’m offered tend to be characters who deal with mortality, something that forces me to examine and reflect on my own mortality. The most beautiful thing about being an artist is that your profession is an opportunity to express your observations about what happens in your real life. I am living a very exciting period for me because the roles I am playing allow me to explore my own identity.
Actor Ron Perlman, with director Gabriel Beristain, yesterday during filming in Miramon. Ruben Plaza
He comments that he has known Gabriel Beristain for 23 years. In fact, in 2021 they filmed ‘The Caddy’, a short in which he served as the director and you as the protagonist. After so many years they will have forged a certain friendship. Is it easier or more difficult to be under the command of a friend?
This is his first fiction feature film and I must say that I am delighted to be able to embody the execution of his vision, which he has arrived at after many years of research into the type of film he wanted to make. He is a very prepared, very passionate director, who is very clear about what story he wanted to tell and how he wanted to do it.. He has managed to infect the entire team with his enthusiasm. The cast is very excited because we are all in the same boat as Gabi.
You were one of the most visible voices and faces of the last strike of Hollywood actors and screenwriters. A few months after closing an agreement, how do you rate it? Was it satisfactory for you?
No. We continue working to achieve what we want. I can’t say more, at this moment. Follow the upcoming news carefully.
