When it came time to cast the role of intergalactic
roving reporter Ford Prefect in the new movie based on Douglas
Adams’ hilarious sci-fi novel, "The Hitchhiker’s Guide to
the Galaxy," filmmakers didn’t panic, they just sent the
script to hip-hop artist and actor Mos Def.
"In my initial meeting with [producer] Nick Goldsmith and
[director] Garth Jennings, I was really intrigued by their energy
and their perspective and when they said, ’Your character plays
a journalist from outer space,’ I said, ’That sounds fun,’"
Def told GO Brooklyn.
The 31-year-old Brooklyn native, who now lives in Brooklyn Heights,
confided he was further convinced the job was for him once he
heard the list of talented, well-respected actors the filmmakers
had enlisted to play aliens, robots and other assorted space
travelers in the movie, which begins the day the most ordinary
man on Earth, Arthur Dent – played by British TV star Martin
Freeman ("The Office") – discovers his planet is about
to be demolished.
Fortunately, his best friend, Ford Prefect, whom Arthur has failed
to recognize as not quite human, knows exactly what to do: abandon
the planet for unknown stellar destinations and embark on what
the film’s press notes cheekily call "an incredible adventure
with a frustrating lack of tea."
"I just liked the character, the people who were involved
in it," Def said, admitting he was unfamiliar with the British
cult classic until he signed on to the movie. "When they
told me Sam Rockwell was involved [as Zaphod Beeblebrox, a galactic
president with a rock star attitude], I thought that was a really
good sign. Martin Freeman, who for a long time I was mistaking
for Ricky Gervais, because I was a big fan of ’The Office.’ Zooey
Deschanel [as Trillian, a drop-dead gorgeous astrophysicist with
an alien boyfriend]. Anna Chancellor [as Questular Rontok]. I
loved everyone who worked on this. I was a big fan of their work.
Bill Nighy [as Slartibartfast, a planetary construction engineer].
Alan Rickman [as the voice of Marvin, a chronically depressed
robot], who I worked on ’Something the Lord Made’ with. It was
just a great group of people."
Describing his character as a "very straight-talking, problem-solving,
heroic kind of guy," as well as "part adviser, captain,
philosopher, answer-man and James Bond, all rolled up into one,"
Def has said he likes Ford Prefect because, "He doesn’t
get hung up on things" and confessed the character is someone
he would like to know as a person.
"He struck me as a guy who is very unafraid and just tells
it like it is," said Def. "He doesn’t get flustered.
He just sees the true nature of things as they are, and I think
what Arthur likes about him is that he’s this kind of man-about-town
who is very hip and smart and fits in where Arthur doesn’t."
Def also said he liked the book and movie’s central theme and
catch phrase, "Don’t panic!"
"It’s about the idea that your curiosity should always be
stronger than your fear," he noted.
Born Dante Terrell Smith and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Mos
Def (slang for "most definitely") launched his music
career in 1996 with the popular single, "Universal Magnetic."
The success of the record led to his collaboration with Talib
Kweli, with whom he formed Black Star and made the critically
acclaimed album "Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star."
In 1999, Def released "Black on Both Sides," his solo
debut, which went gold and was credited by critics as bringing
hip-hop back to its soapbox roots.
Def’s acting career has been just as busy and successful. In
addition to co-starring in light-hearted fare like "Hitchhiker’s"
and "The Italian Job," Def won a Golden Globe for his
performance in the HBO drama, "Something the Lord Made"
and earned rave reviews for his appearances in the big-screen
dramas, "Monster’s Ball" and "The Woodsman,"
and the Spike Lee satire, "Bamboozled," as well as
on stage in the Tony-nominated, Pulitzer Prize-winning play,
"TopDog/Underdog." Def also hosts the acclaimed HBO
series, "Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry."
By keeping busy and avoiding repetition, Def has managed to avoid
being pigeonholed – not an easy feat in myopic Hollywood.
"I get all kinds of scripts – dramas, comedies, good scripts,
bad ones," he said. "But I’m not getting one type of
story more than the other."
Def also said he bases his acting choices on the quality of the
screenplay, the character he is offered and how passionate he
is about the project, not on how different something is from
the last part he played or how it might further his career.
"I do what I’m enthusiastic about, what appeals to me,"
he explained. "It’s really that simple. I think there is
naturally an impulse to do a variety of different things. It’s
never like, ’I have to break up the monotony. I’ve got to do
this now.’ It’s like, ’You know, it would be interesting to do
this. I’m curious about this.’ And then I’ve been fortunate enough
to have these things available to me."
In addition to preparing for the upcoming sequel to "The
Italian Job," Def is working on a new play, titled "Free
Man of Color," a reading of which he recently did with actor
Keith David and his "TopDog/Underdog" co-star Jeffrey
Wright at Manhattan’s Public Theater. Def said he is hoping the
play will be staged next year in either London or New York.
"I’m very, very excited about that," he said. "It’s
set in the early 1800s in New Orleans, and it’s really just a
fantastic play. Amazing. Amazing. Amazing. I play the manservant
to a free man of color. So, I play the slave of a descendent
of slaves. I don’t want to give too much away, but it explains
the creation of America, the political and social circumstances
that birthed America."
So, now that his acting career is soaring, does that mean Def
plans to give up his music?
"No," he assured. "I’m recording a new album to
put out this August. It’s a challenge [to juggle both careers].
But it’s working out. I’m very blessed."
Def credited his Brooklyn upbringing with helping him develop
his sense of self and his love of the arts and said he chose
to stay in the borough because he has no interest in living somewhere
people are obsessed with fame and fortune.
"I still live in Brooklyn, and so my life is pretty normal
and plain as far as surviving in the industry," said Def.
"I just do my work and then I go home, so I don’t really
feel personally invested in the music or film industries. It’s
just the place where I work right now, and I like my work, but
it’s not like the centerpiece of my life. It enhances my life.
It brings me great joy, but it’s not my whole life."
"The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the
Galaxy" opens April 29 at the Cobble Hill Cinemas [265 Court
St. at Douglass Street, (718) 596-9113], Pavillion Theatre [188
Prospect Park West at 14th Street, (718) 369-0838] and Court
Street UA [108 Court St. at State Street, (718) 246-7459].
