fastchat { EmmaThompson }U

nlike in the 1964movie, MaryPoppins in P.L.Travers books isless merry than

she is frequently poppinoff about some transgres-sion or other. Traversherself was no different,and, as played by EmmaThompson in Saving Mr.Banks, which openedFriday, the imperiousauthor butted heads withWalt Disney (Tom Hanks)for 20 years as the moviemogul tried to obtain theMary Poppins film rights.Thompson, 54, the onlyperson to win an AcademyAward for both acting (out-standing actress, 1992sHowards End) and writ-ing (outstanding adaptedscreenplay, 1995s Senseand Sensibility; she alsowas nominated for bestactress), was born inLondon and studied atCambridge University. As amember of its famed sketch-comedy troupe Footlights,she performed alongsidefuture stars Stephen Fryand Hugh Laurie. After acareer breakthrough withthe 1985 West End musicalrevival Me and My Girl,she went on to a string ofroles both prestigious andpopulist, including a guestshot as Frasiers firstex-wife on Cheers. Sheherself was married toactor-director KennethBranagh from 1989 untilseparating in 1995, andsince 2003 she has beenwed to British actor-producer Greg Wise.The actress, who also

earned Oscar nominationsfor her roles in TheRemains of the Day andIn the Name of theFather (both 1993), spokewith frequent Newsdaycontributor Frank Lovece.

Before we talk about themovie, I just want to askif youre OK after thatfall you took yesterday?[During her hand andfootprint ceremony atthe TLC ChineseTheatre in Hollywood.]I didnt really fall! I

was doing a silly pratfall, andthe press said I actually fellover, but I didnt. Just one ofmy clowning things. I wasjust mucking about. I shouldlearn. I really should learnthat any joke like that isliable to be taken seriously.

The British papers said yourhusband believes that youwere made to playcantankerous, opinionatedold bats. So how long will hehave to sleep on the couch?Nooooooooo, I dont

think he said that. I made ajoke about that at the[Saving Mr. Banks]premiere in London. Iwas standingonstage, and I hadwritten a jokeabout, Myhusband said tome this morningthat you playsomeone whowrote about a

nanny, and youve played[the childrens-bookcharacter Nanny McPhee],and I wonder if behindevery nanny theres acantankerous, opinionatedold bat. Im sure, given theopportunity, he would havesaid it I told him I wasgoing to say it, and he said,Yes, thats quite funny.

Still, the overall point seemsto be that you fit thecharacter of P.L. Travers inthat youre very willing tosay what you think.

No, not atall, actually!

I wish Ihad a

little bit more of hercourage. I was brought upto be terribly polite and totreat everybody extremelywell. Whilst Ill certainlynot stint on an opinion ifthats whats wanted, Icouldnt possibly be as rudeor unpleasant as she is. Notthat I necessarily think itsa terrible thing to be shewas a very honest woman.But while my friends mightsay otherwise, I cant thinkof anyone I resemble less.

And youre being very niceto me, so there you go. Youmust be offered so manyroles, how is it you canchoose a prestige projectlike Saving Mr. Banks onthe one hand and anot-so-prestigioussupernatural teen romancelike this year's BeautifulCreatures on the other?Well, of course, the quick

answer is, Im not offeredso many roles, becausethere arent so many rolesfor middle-aged women.

Your recent remark thatdancing with Prince Charleswas better than sexexploded across, like, everynewspaper in the world. So,um, just how good a danceris he?

It was an off-the-cuffgag, and thanks to Timemagazine, whichextrapolated that oneremark from a 45-minuteinterview, it has, ofcourse, gone viral. Youknow, when taken out ofcontext, all of the joy andthe humor and the lighttouch is sucked out ofthat remark. So nowpeople ask me, Is dancingwith Prince Charles reallybetter than sex? Am Iexpected to answer thatseriously? I was just havingfun, but unfortunately thedecontexualization, whichhappens so much in theprinted word these days,kills all humor stone dead.

I will straighten this outalong with the other things!Just make it funny.

Keep the light touch.What is life without it?

Actor Paul Walker,who died in a carcrash at age 40 onNov. 30, had a core fanbase from his role in theFast & Furious movies.Since his death, interestin Walker, and the chanceto discover some of hisother films, has been onthe rise.Walkers page on the

Internet Movie Databasehas had so many hits overthe past two weeks thatat press time, he wasranked No. 8 on the siteslist of top emerging starsof 2013. The index isdevoted to stars whomade their first appear-ance on the sites list oftop 100 stars of the year(Walker came in No. 61).Walkers movies have

been getting extensiveairtime all over the cableuniverse these days. TheFast and the Furiouspops up for showing at 8and 10 tonight on TNT.Cable and satellite

subscribers also candiscover otherWalkerfilms. AnOnDemand PaulWalker channel features 12of the actorsmovies, fromthe Fast and the Furiousfilms to the inspiringEight Below, withWalker as an explorerwhoheads back to the Ant-arctic to rescue a teamofsled dogs. Rentals are $2.95to $3.95, and the channel isup until Dec. 31.

DANIEL BUBBEO

Interest inWalker fastand furious

PaulWalkers fan basehas grown since his death.

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