The man with no ego

Oct 20 2000
The Mirror
by John Hiscock

Action hero Harrison Ford hates being recognized and says snuggling Michelle Pfeiffer is all in a day's work.

Most men would remember romping naked in an explicit love scene with gorgeous Michelle Pfeiffer - but not Harrison Ford.

Even though the raunchy sequence in the supernatural thriller What Lies Beneath is the most graphic he has ever performed on screen, the rugged Hollywood star insists it was just part of a job which he has now mainly forgotten.

"If you were in my position, you might find it fun but, you know what, I can't remember any details," he revealed with a smile.

"I thought the scenes were fun and it came easily and naturally but I can't say much more than that. I enjoyed performing with Michelle but that's about as much as I can remember."

What Lies Beneath should be particularly memorable for Harrison because it marks a break from his usual roles.

It is the first time he has played someone who is not remotely heroic and who also has a shocking side to his character. As unfaithful husband, Dr Norman Spencer, he is not all he seems to be.

"I've always wanted to work with Michelle and the fact that my character was very different from people's expectations was a bonus," he admitted. "The character doesn't fit the usual stereotypical Harrison Ford part, so it interested me. I'm not worried about whether people will accept me in this role - the story's so good they'll have to."

Pleasant and affable, Harrison Ford is nevertheless reluctant to talk about himself. A film legend at 58, his 38 films have grossed $10billion around the world - seven of them are among the Top 40 moneymakers of all time. But, even after 25 years as one of the world's biggest stars, he is still horrified to be recognised on the street.

"I do my best not to draw attention to myself," he said. "I'm a pretty normal looking person and so I'm always disquieted when I think I'm blending in and then I look around and see that people have recognised me.

"And when I meet people I've seen on the screen, I often don't remember that I know them personally. My reaction is to avert my eyes and give them a little privacy. I forget that I'm supposed to say 'hi' because I know them."

Harrison is a rarity in Hollywood - a star with no ego. His films include such blockbusters as the Star Wars and Indiana Jones trilogies, The Fugitive, Air Force One and Patriot Games, but he hasn't got a favourite. In fact, he rarely bothers to watch them.

"I don't think I've seen a single one of the films I've been in all the way through after their first screening. It makes me uncomfortable." he said. "I've been enormously lucky. I just choose roles that I think will be entertaining and make good films."

Even today, it is plain that he'd rather be at his beloved Wyoming ranch than here in Beverly Hills talking about his latest film.

At home he is surrounded by his "toys" - a Bell Jet Ranger Helicopter, six motorcycles, four BMWs, two Harley-Davidson's, five aeroplanes (including a classic 1956 de Havilland Beaver) and a dozen cars. His wife of 17 years, Melissa Mathison, a screenwriter who penned ET, also gave him a 1966 Austin Healey 3000 for his birthday in July.

A carpenter before becoming an actor, Harrison still potters around putting up shelves and making furniture. On a shelf in his office sit 24 years' worth of Fine Woodworking magazine.

"I've never had lofty goals," he said. "I just try and do the best job I can on whatever comes my way. And I make sure I have a certain amount of time devoted to my family and my relationship with my wife.

"We live a normal family life. My wife works as well, so that means we share the tasks involved with child-rearing. My daughter is ten and my son is 13, so the job of a parent is very complicated.

"We are concerned with our children's lives and getting them through school, so the things that I do are as mundane and practical as what anybody else does."

To ensure that he is not away from his family too much, Harrison will only do one film a year. Luckily he is shrewd when it comes to picking scripts. He rejected the role that Michael Douglas took in Traffic and, because he did not like the script, he has decided not to appear again as Jack Ryan in The Sum Of All Fears, the follow-up to Patriot Games and Clear And Present Danger.

Instead, Harrison has chosen to go on location to Russia and Iceland to make K-19: The Widowmaker. It's a story that could have been pulled from recent headlines. He will play the captain of a Soviet submarine who must avert a nuclear war when the vessel's reactor cooling system fails. He also hopes to return as archaeologist-adventurer Indiana Jones.

"Three months ago, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and I sat down and talked through ideas for a fourth Indiana Jones movie. Somebody's working on a script right now," he said. "I'd love to play the part again.

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