Audience: You are a star of planetary dimensions, but, deep down, we know very little about you…
Adam Driver: I was born in San Diego. My father was a preacher. My parents divorced when I was 7 and my mom took my sister and us to a small town called Mishawaka, Indiana. She remarried a Baptist pastor. From there, I had only one desire… to get away! I was going around in circles. In high school, the only things that broke up the daily routine were school dances. Like all kids, I smoked in secret, drank too much and climbed the big metal antennas of the local radio stations.
How was it with your parents?
My relationship with my mother and stepfather was complicated. I had to pay them $200 rent to be allowed to sleep… in the garage! They assumed that I had to contribute to the expenses of the house! If I wanted to enter through the main door, I had to knock and wait for it to be opened to me, as if I were a stranger. I even had to buy my own little fridge and microwave. I think they wanted to teach me to become independent.
How did you come to want to make films?
My film culture boiled down to Rambo or films like that. I had a grandfather who had a collection of over 500 VHS tapes. I thought it must be a cool job to be an actor! It was a time when I was selling vacuum cleaners and doing telemarketing. So after high school, I applied to Juilliard, America’s most prestigious arts college. My application was not accepted. But I was not discouraged, I told my family and my girlfriend that I was going to Hollywood to become a star!
“I was too cash, I made people cry”
How was this departure?
I put my fridge and my microwave in my old car and I left. But things quickly turned sour. I broke down. When I finally arrived at a hostel in Santa Monica, I was dry. For two nights, I slept on a beach. I threw in the towel and spent all the money I had left to fill up the gas tank and get back to my parents. The little adventure only lasted a week!
You finally joined the army…
The war in Iraq had started a year ago when I became a Marine in February 2002. At the time, I didn’t know what direction to take in life, I just wanted to get away from Mishawaka at all costs. My goal was really to serve my country abroad. I never wondered if this war was good or bad. I was a soldier and had to follow orders. I trained for two and a half years to take on this mission. I was operational, but everything fell apart in a bicycle accident where I fractured my sternum. I had convinced my battalion to deploy despite the injury, but I ended up hurting myself even more. So I had to leave the army. It was devastating. Suddenly, I became a civilian again, with a strong sense of guilt.
How was the transition from the military world to the civilian world?
It was not fluid! In the army, there are no frills. I thought all civilian problems were small compared to those faced by the military. I couldn’t understand why people complained about the air conditioning being too cold or the heating being too hot. And me, I was too cash. I made people cry. It took me many months to get used to this aggressive way of talking to others.
“I was afraid of disappointing Star Wars fans”
You quickly returned to your first desire to be an actor…
Yes, I resubmitted a new application to Juilliard and was accepted. I approached acting with the work ethic of a Marine. Every morning I woke up before dawn. To get in shape, I made myself six eggs for breakfast, then ran five miles to college, where I was part-time student and janitor. After a day of classes, evening rehearsals and my janitorial job, I rushed home to watch films by Fellini and Cassavetes. It’s like Rocky went to film school! I held on. If things hadn’t worked out, I was ready to sleep on a bench in Central Park and reach into the trash cans of neighborhood restaurants for food! My determination finally paid off.
Was playing in Star Wars a dream?
The pressure was enormous. I didn’t want to screw up and disappoint the fans. I hesitated before signing. Now, not a day goes by without kids I meet on the street saying, “Hello Kylo Ren!”
Key dates
1. November 19, 1983
Adam was born in San Diego. His father is a preacher, but it is his mother and stepfather, a Baptist pastor, who will raise him.
2. 2012
Adam lands the role of Adam Sackler, Lena Dunham’s unpredictable love interest on HBO’s Girls, which he will hold until 2016.
3. June 22, 2013
Adam marries Joanne Tucker, an actress he met in college. They had a baby boy in 2016.
4. 2021
Adam is impeccable in The Last Duel and House of Gucci, by Ridley Scott, alongside Lady Gaga in the second.
See also: #TBT: Sandra Bullock: The heroine of Hollywood!
Frank Rousseau, in Los Angeles