WALL TO-WALL COMEDY
Michael Cera gets by with a little help from his friends in The LEGO Batman Movie, and beyond
Michael Cera and Will Arnett have a few things in common. Both comedy performers grew up in the Toronto area, and co- starred in the acclaimed sitcom Arrested Development. Now they have key voice roles in the animated spin off The LEGO Batman Movie.
Cera is Robin to Arnett’s Batman in the production, which continues the momentum after 2014’s The LEGO Movie earned positive reviews and a surprising US$ 469.2 million at the worldwide box office.
In the new flick, Arnett is the star and apparently a convincing persuader. “I think Will got me the job,” says Cera, 28, in Toronto promoting the feature. “He came to me initially, and asked me if I’d be interested in doing Robin because maybe they were thinking of me.”
In the film, a self- absorbed Batman adopts Robin as a sidekick while the crimefighter tries to save Gotham City from the scheming Joker ( Zack Galifianakis). New to the laughfest is Rosario Dawson as Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl and Mariah Carey voicing Mayor McCaskill.
Original co-writers and co-directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are producing the latest LEGO incarnation. Chris McKay, the animation supervisor on the first film, directs Seth Grahame-Smith’s screenplay.
Certainly, guiding Cera through the tone of the second movie project was unnecessary. “I was a big fan of the first one and that was an indication to me what we were making,” he says. “The pace of the humour’s intense and it has a very high joke frequency – sort of wallto- wall comedy like Arrested Development.”
Unfortunately, the colleagues from the TV show never ended up in the recording studio together, but fans would never guess it based on the Batman and Robin interplay. “It’s all in the editing,” says the actor. “It’s very musical.”
Besides, Cera says, he had director McKay to count on when required or desired. “You don’t really read from a script because you learn what you’re doing as you go,” Cera says of the dialogue. “It’s a big leap of faith but I did trust Chris (McKay), and he really was the engine room of the humour.”
As usual, Cera adds an endearing innocence to his Robin persona, although modesty doesn’t allow him to take all the credit. “The animators bring so much charm to the character,” he says. “So it’s probably like half and half.” Are you being being humble? “Okay, 60- 40,” Cera adds smiling.
Mostly, the actor from Brampton, Ont. has been 100% busy. He recently wrapped shooting Aaron Sorkin’s Molly’s Game in Toronto. It’s based on the true story of a former U. S. Olympic skier who is the target of the FBI after she establishes a high- stakes international poker tournament. “I play one of the poker players,” says Cera who co-stars opposite headliner Jessica Chastain, Kevin Costner and Idris Elba.
Filming Molly’s Game was a Toronto homecoming of sorts for Cera who’s now based in New York. “I think I knew about half the crew from other jobs.” He has another upcoming show but it wasn’t filmed in Toronto; David Lynch’s updated Twin Peaks series debuting on Showtime in late May. “I only have a small role but it’s one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life,” says Cera. “Like everybody else, I signed a non-disclosure agreement, so I’m not allowed to say anything.”
Not even who you play? He shakes his head, no. Secrecy rules the new Twin Peaks. Here’s an example. “When I was doing my first scene I asked the wardrobe woman who I was doing my scene with, and she didn’t know,” Cera says.
Meanwhile, he’s pleased with his progress as an actor so far. And, yes, he can talk about that. “It’s an insecure lifestyle, like anything freelance, but I want to continue earning a living this way,” he says. Occasionally, the media glare gets to him a little, yet he endures the hassle. “I’m not so good with getting attention, which is an annoying thing for an actor to say,” Cera agrees. "Some people build their careers that way, and that’s fine, but it’s not for me, so I navigate around it the best I can.
‘I’M NOT SO GOOD WITH GETTING ATTENTION, WHICH IS AN ANNOYING THING FOR AN ACTOR TO SAY’ — MICHAEL CERA