The Honest Truth

RICKY GERVAIS THINKS HE'S ONE OF THE WORST ACTORS IN HOLLYWOOD - BUT THAT HASN'T STOPPED HIM FROM BECOMING ONE OF THE FUNNIEST.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY PAUL SMITH

There are millions of aspiring comedic actors in the world, but very few become household names. And triple-threats who can also write and direct with equal aplomb? They're even harder to find. Which may explain why Ricky Gervais is in such high demand, with talents like Tina Fey, Jonah Hill and Ralph Fiennes lining up to work with the 48-year-old Brit.

A major celebrity in his native England for years, Gervais appeared on the American pop culture radar in 2005, when his cult BBC hit "The Office" was adapted into an NBC sitcom. (Gervais' David Brent inspired Steve Carell's character, a bumbling regional manager of a small paper distribution company.) That same year, Gervais debuted a new HBO series, "Extras," in which he played an extra who eventually catches his big break on a network sitcom. Despite only running 13 episodes, the series attracted A-list actors like Kate Winslet and Ben Stiller, garnering eight Emmy nods (including a Best Actor win for Gervais) in the process. In both shows, the former DJ-turned-comedy genius not only wrote and directed (with his longtime creative partner, Stephen Merchant), but also starred as a socially inept oaf whose idiotic antics inspired embarrassment and empathy in equal measure, brilliantly mining discomfort for laughs.

After supporting roles in For Your Consideration and Night At The Museum, and his debut as a leading man in last year's Ghost Town, his writing/directing skills are being put to the test for the first time on the big screen with this month's The Invention of Lying. Packed with top-notch actors (like the aforementioned Fey and Hill), the film is a mature comedy in which the Reading native stars as a writer who suddenly discovers the ability to lie - and uses it for personal gain - in a world where everyone tells the truth.

With self-generated projects such as Cemetery Junction (a 1970s-set comedy about men working at an insurance company, starring Fiennes) and Flanimals (set to be released in 2011, with Steve Carell) in various stages of production, the stakes are obviously high. And one thing Gervais has learned in the process is that he relishes calling all the shots.

Now that The Invention of Lying - the first film you've nurtured from creative conception to completion - is done, how do you feel about it? Was it hard being behind the camera instead of in front of it? "No, I slipped into it pretty well. If somebody asked me to direct The Matrix, I wouldn't know where to start. I'd be in real trouble. But I know where I am with this 'comedy-plus,' as I call it. [The film] is great. There's not another comedy quite like it at the moment. It's a grown-up comedy."

Do you like having creative control? "Being in charge is where I'm most comfortable, but I don't think of it as control as much as artistic freedom. If I'm going to be on the set from 7am to 7pm every day, I might as well do it all and get paid three times, you know what I mean? Being hired as one of the leads is very nice and flattering, but it's not like I'm pursuing it. I never thought of myself as an actor, and, let's face it, I'm not a great actor. The creative process is what excites me. Seeing a film you're in is fun. Awards are fun. Money is nice. But nothing is more fun than Steve Merchant and me sitting in a room, laughing about what we just said. Nothing else comes close."

You honestly don't think you're a good actor? "I fell into the acting thing because, with David Brent, I was the best person for the job. But mostly, I'm not. If I got offered 100 films, 90 of them would be arbitrary, and I'd know there were better people than me. I was offered a film after the first episode of 'The Office' went out. A studio sent me the script and I said, 'Who's the lead?' They went, 'You are.' I said, 'Who's gonna go and see that?! You want John Cusack.' They must have thought, 'Why is this nobody talking himself out of a film?' But every other actor is better than me."

So it's safe to assume that you really did turn down a supporting role in Pirates of the Caribbean? "Yeah, I was offered that, but I was busy. I don't want to sit in a Winnebago for six months, then pop up as a comedy pirate. There's nothing wrong with that, but no one's ever said, 'He's been in 19 films for two minutes each. Let's get him his own starring role and let him direct it!' It doesn't happen like that. And I get no joy out of seeing my fat face on the screen. I get joy out of the work."

Are you done with TV for good? "I haven't left TV behind. There are things about TV I like more than film. The thing about TV is that it still has that common consciousness, because people watch it at the same time, and you can turn it around quicker. What I like about film is that you can make it timeless, and I've always had one eye on the legacy. When we were making 'The Office,' we'd come up with some jokes that made us laugh, but we decided they wouldn't be funny in a year's time because there was a certain cultural reference."

Why did you end both of your TV shows after such short runs? "Because of the intensity that Steve and I have to work at. We write it, we direct it, we produce it and no one's even allowed in the edit. We hand over a completely finished product, and you can't do that for too long. It's just too intense. You'll run out of ideas. You'll repeat yourself, or the quality will go down. And, you know, I started late in life. I've got so many ideas, and I don't want to die before I can do all of them."

You're brilliant at creating characters who are uncomfortable and who make everyone around them uncomfortable. What appeals to you about that? "When we're in a safe environment where we're not starving and our children aren't being shot at, what's the worst thing that happens to us? The most mortifying thing for everyone is being embarrassed socially. I think that for many people, public speaking is a bigger fear than death. I've decided that the most important thing in comedy or drama is empathy, and everyone can empathize with getting embarrassed. There's a little bit of David Brent in everyone, because we all want to be loved, and it's fun playing with that and turning the knife of social embarrassment."

But doesn't that embarrassed feeling get old after a while? "Eventually it can get wearing, so you've got to be able to drop the irony and come back to genuine emotion. The heart of 'The Office' was Tim and Dawn (the British Jim and Pam), not David Brent. The heart of 'Extras' wasn't the A-list actors, it was the friendship between Andy and Maggie. I think sooner or later you've got to stand up and unapologetically say, 'This [sweetness] is what I believe in.'"

Who or what taught you to find that balance between awkwardness and romance in your shows? "The Marx Brothers. In their early work, they're just running around being funny. That's great, but it doesn't resonate. One of their producers said, 'I can make you twice as good. I'm gonna cut half the jokes and put in a musical number and a romantic thread.' So now these guys are doing crazy things, but they're doing it to get two people together. So now they've got a point, and it's beautiful. Those moments where you're suddenly seeing someone needing something, or someone doing something for the good of someone else, are heartwarming."

The American version of "The Office" is entering its seventh season. How do you feel about the way it's carried on the concept you created? "I love it! What they've done is huge, because [the UK version] got in and out with 12 episodes and a special that we put everything we had into. They've got so much pressure - they're a jewel in NBC's crown and have won all these Emmys - and they're not allowed to stop like we did. And I don't want them to stop. I want Steve Carell to work his fingers to the bone, because I get half his wages!" (Laughs)

Are you surprised the American version is such a huge success? "Well, yes. Every remake has fallen by the wayside, either before it got to production, or taken off on the third episode. But I'm not surprised that America gets it [for] two reasons. 'The Office' isn't as quintessentially English as you first might think. It's about universal subjects. It's about, you know, wasting your life. It's quite existential. A bad boss. Boy meets girl. Also, all my influences are American, from Laurel and Hardy, 'The Simpsons,' Woody Allen, Marx Brothers, through sitcoms like 'Taxi,' 'Cheers,' 'M*A*S*H,' right up to the present day with great stuff like 'Arrested Development' and 'Curb Your Enthusiasm.' All my influences have been American. So I'm not surprised in that sense."

Your idea was clearly a good one. How do you feel with the fame that comes with being known? You say you aren't a good actor, but you can't deny that you do deal with fame. "I'm getting a bit better at it, but I try and ignore it. I try and live a normal life. But, I mean, you can't. I don't want to be out, and I don't go out to parties. The fame for me has never been the best bit. It's always been the worst bit. You know, everything else about this is better than being recognized. Genuinely. The work's great. The money's good. I love nice reviews, I love the awards. I love jumping queues at the airport. But it feels weird. It's not natural, it's not right. And I knew when I went into it that it was an upshot of what I did. If you're a successful actor, you're a famous person. But I just want people to know, you know, why I do it. I remember one of the first interviews I did, I was very prickly about the whole subject. And I don't want to be lumped in with people who just do anything to be famous. I know there's a difference between Robert DeNiro and a 'Big Brother' winner. And I want to firmly be in that first camp."