Amy Adams gets swept up in Muppet magic
Amy Adams gets swept up in Muppet magic - Trying to pigeonhole Amy Adams is an exercise in futility, and she wouldn't have it any other way. For instance, she's currently portraying Lois Lane opposite Henry Cavill's Superman in the Zack Snyder superhero reboot, Man of Steel, which is filming in and around Vancouver. Last winter, Adams received a supporting actress Oscar nomination for her gritty bartender portrayal of Charlene in the acclaimed Mark Wahlberg-Christian Bale boxing flick, The Fighter.
Fans can enjoy a more immediate experience by seeing her play the lovable Mary in the musical comedy, The Muppets, which opened Nov. 23.
"I have been very fortunate that I've been able to do all kinds of roles," said the 37-year-old during a break from shooting Man of Steel to promote The Muppets.
In the James Bobbin-directed movie, Adams' Mary is dating Gary (Jason Segel) in Smalltown, U.S.A. Gary and his brother Walter - a new Muppet we are introduced to - are huge Muppet fans. When they find out that oil baron Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) wants to destroy the Muppet Theatre to drill for oil, Walter, Gary and Mary head to Los Angeles to try and save the theatre. First, they have to reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways, in order to stage a save the Muppet Theatre telethon.
Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo and the rest of the crew, reunite and leap into action, Muppets-style, putting on a razzle-dazzle show in the process.
For Adams, becoming a part of the Muppets festivities was difficult to resist. For one thing, Segel, (who also co-wrote the script with Forgetting Sarah Marshall director Nick Stoller), sent Adams a personalized video invitation to join the cast with assistance from Kermit the Frog.
"And I have definitely lived in the Disney world before," she said, referring to her celebrated part of Princess Giselle in the 2007 fantasy-comedy Enchanted. She also liked the fact that The Muppets "isn't a remake but a re-imagining."
Filming was another matter. "It took a lot of energy," said Adams of the shoot. Mind you, she had a then five-month-old daughter Aviana on set with her, so she was multi-tasking.
But Adams, a lifelong Muppets fanatic, had many eye-opening experiences filming the movie.
"It was fantastic but so much different than I expected," she said. "I have a whole new respect for the puppeteers. I did not know it was so technical, so complicated and so specific."
She also enjoyed "the optimistic atmosphere" surrounding the production. "I don't know if it was left over from my childhood, but I would treat (the Muppets) just like any of the other actors on set."
The diva Miss Piggy might have been the exception. They share a song in the movie called Me Party, which is one of the highlights, although they have competition.
The score contains a dozen songs, including the revered Muppets tune, Rainbow Connection, played by Kermit as a banjo singalong. Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit is re-arranged for The Muppets barbershop quartet; Camilla and the Chickens cluck to Cee Lo Green's Forget You; and the Bret McKenzie tune, Man or Muppet, lets Segel do his thing.
Despite Miss Piggy's scene stealing on their duet, Adams said she has fond memories of working alongside the Muppets star. But beyond that they didn't have much of a relationship. Adams smiled: "Miss Piggy was always very polite but didn't want to talk to me off camera, and I have worked with a few actresses like that, so I left her alone."
Aiding Adams through all things Muppet was Segel, the co-star of the hit sitcom, How I Met Your Mother, and the performer who championed the movie right from the start.
"He has a ton of energy," said Adams of Segel. "And he's like a big kid, but a true professional, and that always helps. Plus he has this surreal passion for the Muppets, so he brought that to the set every day."
Segel returned the compliment, explaining that Adams, an accomplished singer and dancer as well as an Oscar-nominated actress, provided encouragement, and a few suggestions, when required.
"It's scary when you are trying to find the right tone," he said of acting in a fable. "But Amy is just perfect at it. She had to do a bit of that in Enchanted, so she's got it down. She helped me quite a bit."
On the other hand, Segel didn't have to offer assistance to the actress in referencing Muppets material. Adams is devoted to the old variety series and the films, especially 1979's The Muppet Movie, 1981's The Great Muppet Caper and 1984's The Muppets Take Manhattan.
"I didn't have to re-acquaint myself with The Muppets," she said. "I never left them, and now that I know them, I will never let them go."
via: canada
