Walken Lets Her Ripper

Actor Christopher Walken recently made headlines when he revealed in an interview that he did not watch streaming video and didn't even own a cell phone. Well, this November 1995 Computer Game Review interview seems to suggest that's nothing new--here he says he's never even seen a CD-ROM (after shooting two of them)! This was published as a sidebar to an article about Ripper (which is now old enough that we should call it Bossman) but he talks about his work on Privateer 2: The Darkening, noting that he shot his role there for two days. And look how much fun he's having on the cover!

A small bonus from this issue: a previously unarchived version of the Wing Commander CTCG release advertisement with the tagline "Available Everywhere!"; sadly, this was not true!

One on One Exclusive Interview with Walken

“This guy can convey a character in a situation so well, it’s just unmatched.”
-Mark Semeret, president, Take 2 Interactive.

CGR: You've been very successful in movies. Why get involved with a CD-ROM project, and how did you get involved?

Christopher Walken: “My agent called me and told me [people] are starting to do this now, there’s a lot of actors doing it.”

CGR: You are doing Ripper and you are doing the Darkening with Origin, yes?

CW: “I-did the Darkening, yeah. It was two days over in England.”

CGR: Is this fun?

CW: “It's different. It's interesting. The one I did before (The Darkening) had sets, this doesn't, but it’s interesting.”

CGR: We've had people tell us that doing an interactive project is just like acting in a movie and that it's nothing like acting in a movie. What's your take?

Cw: “Well, I'm reading my lines off a teleprompter, which is nothing like a movie; but that's only because the job came on such short notice and it’s easier to do the teleprompter thing. For me, it’s a little more like Saturday Night Live, where I read off cue-cards.”

CGR: We've also heard it’s a lot like being on stage.

CW: “Yes, except that I’m reading my lines.”

CGR: Did you know anything about interactive media before these projects?

CW: “No, I can't even turn on a computer. I've never seen a CD-ROM.”

CGR: As an actor, is this as legitimate a medium as television, film or theater?

CW: “Sure. You never know what's going to happen to this—this [medium] is obviously something that's just beginning.”

CGR: Do you worry about getting typecast: You seem to tend toward playing the heavies a lot.

CW: “No.”

CGR: Do you have a favorite role that you've done?

CW: “No.”

GGR: Any projects you wish you hadn't done?

CW: “Oh, sure!” (laughs)

CGR: What are you workifig on after this?

CW: “I don’t know. I had a bunch of things in a row. I did the thing in England [the Darkening] last week, and after tomorrow, I’m unemployed.”

CGR: Would you do another interactive project?

CW: “Sure. It'll be interesting to see what it’s like when it's done, because right now it's just people against blue walls. It’s a whole different ballgame, as far as movies go. Maybe that’s where movies will go, with computerized sets.”

CGR: Is it hard to keep what the Wcharacter knows in mind when in a given scene what he knows could change depending on what the player knows?

CW: “No, the lines are different. I guess it's a good thing I didn't think of that.