A man of many roles

LOS A NGELES — James Marsden, 41, has an impressively varied list of movie roles on his resume.

Last year, he co-starred in a spoof thanks to the Anchorman sequel, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, and he played a villain in the action flick Two Guns. He’s also starred in a remake (Straw Dogs), a rom-com (27 Dresses), musicals (Enchanted, Hairspray) and a superhero series portraying Cyclops in the X-Men franchise.

He enjoyed his breakout in 2004’s hit movie version of Nicholas Sparks’s The Notebook alongside Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling. Now, he’s back as one of the headliners in The Best of Me, yet another cinematic take on a Sparks’ novel.

In the movie, Marsden plays Dawson, who reunites with his high school sweetheart Amanda (Michelle Monaghan) after complications separated them as teens. Luke Bracey plays Dawson as the rebel teenager and Liana Liberato is the young Amanda whose rich father gets between the young lovers. The film, directed by Michael Hoffman, is an exploration of both the old and rekindled romances.

The always affable Marsden was available recently to offer his thoughts:

On returning to a movie based on a Sparks’ book: “I try to work my way into a Nick Sparks film every decade,” said Marsden.

On the yearning quality of the movie, he said it’s “one of those movies that take advantage of that.”

“As humans, we always like to take a look at the road not travelled, and romanticize about what your life might have been; like if it was richer and more fulfilled,” he said.

Marsden described co-star Monaghan as an energy filled “beacon of light.”

Talking of how The Best of Me relates to the modern world, he said, “Nowadays, with social media, it’s much easier to call up your high school sweetheart. I think a lot of people do that now.”