'The Lowdown' star Ethan Hawke and creator Sterlin Harjo talk about the experience of debuting their show in a theater at THR's TIFF lounge at the 1 Hotel Toronto. Plus, Hawke reveals how he has a couple people in his life that are like his character Lee in the show. While Harjo shares why he wanted to show how diverse Tulsa was in the series.
00:00Actually, like, we were sitting next to each other, and I was listening to Ethan eat popcorn.
00:04I get nervous, and I ate popcorn like a cow the entire time.
00:09I mean, literally, when I stood up, popcorn just fell to the ground.
00:12And he didn't offer me any.
00:13Well, I wouldn't.
00:14I know, but I kept wanting to get going.
00:19Most people who come through here, I'm catching them before the premiere,
00:23but you guys, I have the privilege of talking to you afterwards.
00:27How are you feeling after last night?
00:32It was great.
00:33I mean, you know, everyone was laughing at the right spots, seemed very eager to cheer.
00:38We've never watched it together.
00:40First of all, I love the light box.
00:42It looked great.
00:43It sounded great.
00:44We've never seen it projected like that.
00:47Yeah, and so we got to whisper at all the things.
00:52What did you whisper about?
00:54How great we are.
00:55Great idea.
00:56Oh, yeah, it was a great idea.
00:58The character really gets beat up, and there's also jokes being played out while this is happening.
01:03And for me, it's like that's the bar of the show, tonally.
01:07It's like if they're laughing and also afraid for his life, then the job well done.
01:12Yeah.
01:13And they did last night.
01:14And then my hotel is always at the end.
01:16There's always a moment where you can feel.
01:18I remember I was actually here at a film festival, this film festival years ago with a movie that show remained nameless.
01:25And they did the whole screening.
01:27And right at the moment that was supposed to be the heartbreaking moment, it started with a tiny little giggle.
01:33And then somebody giggled about them laughing.
01:36And it was just like, oh, wow, this movie sucks.
01:37And there's a moment at the end of our show where if they think this is funny, I know they loved what they saw.
01:47What were you looking for in your next, like what was it about this that felt like the right thing to do next?
01:53With Res Dogs, each episode, we started doing a thing in like the second season where each episode had it was sort of a genre piece, you know, inspired by a certain specific genre.
02:02Whether that be horror, like Richard Linklater films, we were ripping off.
02:07And so I just kind of like come to this place where I realized I love genre.
02:12I love being able to have parameters and say something within those parameters.
02:17And so I wanted to do a crime show.
02:19But it was weird how effortlessly I was in the penultimate episode of Reservation Dogs, you know, the second to last.
02:28And that's when this show really started taking off in your mind.
02:32Right.
02:33So there was kind of almost no lag in Sterling's.
02:35Yeah, we just kind of kept, it was like, well, this is the next project.
02:38And we just went straight into it.
02:40And we had had such a good time working together that it was nice to, and we were very familiar with it.
02:44That was going to be my question.
02:45It's like, did you talk about this while you were working on that episode?
02:48It was after.
02:49You were thinking about it.
02:49It was after that.
02:51I was thinking about it.
02:51And then I think we talked about it when we were hanging out at the Philbrook Art Museum.
02:56Yeah, and then you sent me the script.
02:58And then I sent him the script later.
03:00Yeah, but he pretended that he wasn't offering me the part.
03:03I pretended.
03:03I just wanted notes.
03:06He knows this.
03:07I really like him.
03:08You don't meet people that you really get along with that.
03:11You think it's going to happen all the time in your life.
03:13It doesn't happen that often.
03:14My wife knew how I felt about you.
03:16And I was like, he still just sent the script.
03:18And I printed it out.
03:20And I would read a page.
03:21And then she just kind of sat down next to me.
03:22We both read it, like, page at a time.
03:25And we were both like, this is my favorite thing I've ever read.
03:29We were just like, this is incredible.
03:30Like, is he, do you think he wants me to play that part?
03:33And she said, no, no, you're too old.
03:34I said, fuck you.
03:35I'm not too old for this part.
03:37She said, well, ask him.
03:39I trust Ethan so much and love working with him that it was like, here, it's yours now.
03:44And then he interpreted it.
03:46And I was just, you know, blown away with how much he was bringing to it.
03:51I actually did a pass before I sent it to him of, like, what I felt like was the Ethan pass, you know.
03:55Because I just, I feel like I've been such a fan of his.
03:58And then I've worked with him.
03:59And I feel like I know the cadence.
04:03You asked me, hey, would you do a part on Rez Dogs?
04:05I'm like, I'd love to.
04:06But I was expecting a kind of four-line.
04:10I was going to run a subway shop or something.
04:12I thought it was a cameo.
04:13That's basically how you led with that.
04:15And I got it.
04:16And it was this little play.
04:18And it was so in my wheelhouse.
04:20But you're good at that.
04:21You hear somebody's voice.
04:23And that's what I think makes you a great showrunner is, like, once you meet Kyle, you kind of, oh, you start writing scenes.
04:29You're like, Kyle's going to crush this.
04:30And Kyle would really go, oh, I can do that.
04:32Totally, yeah.
04:33Do you know anyone like Lee?
04:36Oh, yeah.
04:37Yeah, very much so.
04:38I think that's why I responded to it so hard.
04:42I mean, there's a part of my brain that's trapped in the 90s and trapped in an ethos that I believe in that Lee is trapped in as well.
04:53That I see as a positive of fighting for actual, real intimacy, real truth.
04:59I have a couple people in my life that were really Lee-like figures for me.
05:05Talk about, like, using Tulsa.
05:06Like, what did you want to convey about the city to people in this versus other things?
05:14I just, you know, I'm in love with the city and I wanted to show how diverse it is from the architecture down to the people, you know?
05:21I mean, it was founded by Muscogee Creek people, which is my tribe.
05:26And I love showing its truths and humor and love and darkness and everything.
05:31You know, I just wanted to show a real portrait of it.
05:33I secretly know the answer to this, but how celebrated are you in the town?
05:38Oh, I don't know.
05:39Mayor?
05:39No.
05:41You're here today to announce your honor.
05:42I'm not so celebrated.
05:43They keep me humble.
05:44Yeah, it's both.
05:47It's both.
05:48It was a five, six-month shoot, so I moved my whole family down there.
05:52And every place we went to, every restaurant, we got a great day.
05:56Oh, your friend's a strong.
05:57Come on in.
05:57Don't say, hey, no, no.
05:59You know, I remember once we first sat down at that pizza place and I asked the waiter what song was on the stereo because they were playing a really cool, it was an Uncle Tupelo song, but I didn't recognize it.
06:10And the waiter came back with the LP and gave it to me.
06:13No, no, no, if you like this song, I was like, okay, I'm liking this city.
06:16But that's because of Sterling.
06:18And I do think they do a good job of beating you up and loving you.
06:23You got to, yeah.
06:24Keep you humble.
06:25Speaking of which, did you do all your own stunts on that?
06:27Were you?
06:28I'm like the Tom Cruise of Tulsa.
06:31I mean, that's really.
06:33I was really in the trunk.
06:34No, I don't pride myself on my stunt work.
06:37I was really in the trunk and it was extremely uncomfortable.
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