  Will Arnett, a native Torontonian, co-stars in the new movie When In Rome, which opens in theatres nationally on Friday. (Handout) |
Daniel Day-Lewis in Nine isn’t the only mangia-cake flinging around a “spicy meatball” accent on the big screen these days.
In the romantic comedy When In Rome, which opens nationally in theatres on Friday, Canadian Will Arnett plays Antonio. He’s a struggling artist working a Roman square, who’s caught in the magic crossfire when unlucky-in-love Beth (Kristen Bell) steals coins from a fountain of love, causing the coins’ original owners to fall for her.
It sounds backward — finding love by stealing from a fountain. But we’re here to talk about Italian accents, not plot logic.
“I’m sure Daniel Day-Lewis laid layers upon layers of research, and built his accent on a rock. I built mine on sand,” Arnett, a Torontonian and husband of Amy Poehler, says dryly.
“It’s not often I get compared to Daniel Day-Lewis,” he continues with a laugh. “It may be the first and last time, unless we’re coincidentally the same height.” (Arnett is actually an inch taller, at 6-foot-2 1/2.)
When In Rome sees four spellbound schlubs — Antonio, a maladroit street magician (Jon Heder), a dumb male model (Dax Shepard) and a crass businessman (Danny DeVito) — impede Beth as she tries to connect with her true love, a sportswriter named Nick (Josh Duhamel).
How does someone who sprang from the deliciously written Arrested Development go about picking scripts, when the results range from funny (Blades Of Glory, in my opinion) to “must avoid” (the guinea pig spy movie G-Force, at least according to Rotten Tomatoes)?
“For this movie, it was Mark Steven Johnson, the director (Daredevil). He was like, ‘Man, you have never really done a character that’s sympathetic in your career.’ And that was kind of by design on my part, because I always find flawed characters much more interesting to play, and more interesting to watch.
“But he said, ‘Here’s a guy who’s Italian on the surface,’ — I don’t want to give it away, not like it’s a Crying Game moment or anything — ‘but under the surface there’s a little bit more going on.’ So that made it more palatable for me.
“The most rewarding thing was having fun with people I like. I’m friends with Dax, Jon Heder, Kristen Bell, and in the process got to know Josh and Danny DeVito. They’re all great, nice people.”
“And then it’s like, ‘Hey, you wanna go to Rome for a few weeks?’ Uh, yes. I do want to do that.”
Arnett recently wrapped voicework on the animated movie Despicable Me (about an evil genius whose lair sits in the middle of a sunshiney suburb). He was the Missing Link in Monsters Vs. Aliens and contributed voices to Ratatouille and Horton Hears A Who.
These days he’s concentrating on writing — collaborating with Arrested Development creator Mitch Hurwitz on a TV pilot — and playing the homebody with his son, while wife Amy Poehler concentrates on her series Parks And Recreation. Arnett recently made a memorable cameo on the show as Amy’s “date from hell” (a medical technician who gives her an MRI to impress her).
“Amy’s so good, as long as I show up and know my lines I know I’ll be all right,” Arnett says.
“We had such a great time making Blades of Glory (in which they played brother and sister), that if something were to come up that made sense, we’d do it.
“But we’re like everybody else. Having kids changes your priorities. Amy’s been working, so that takes up time. We’ve been in California for the better part of a year. I’m happy I’ve been able to work from home.
“I get to watch every Leafs game from here. I spoiled myself and got the (cable) hockey package and I’m Tivo’ed to the hilt. When my dad calls, I say, ‘Don’t tell me the score!’ Then it’s ‘How are you?’”
Arnett’s patience is being tested along with the rest of Leafs Nation. “If you ask me, they should be eliminated from next year’s playoffs too,” he says.
jim.slotek@sunmedia.ca
More Artists
