Interview by Cliff Stephenson
July 3, 2001

The labels "movie star" and "actor" are not always synonymous, but actor Ed Harris has become one of the few actors to successfully straddle the line between art and commerce over the course of a nearly thirty-year career.

Appearing in nearly thirty films in the past ten years alone, Harris began his career in such low-budget cult favorites as Knightriders and Creepshow, finally achieving mainstream success with his portrayal of space pioneer John Glenn in Phillip Kaufman's 1983 epic The Right Stuff. The film went on to snag eight nominations including Best Picture (and four wins) and landed Harris smack dab on the cover of Newsweek magazine.

In the years following the success of The Right Stuff, Harris alternated between smaller, more personal projects and big-budget Hollywood spectacles. But even in such high-profile, action-oriented fare such as The Abyss and The Rock Harris never rested on his acting laurels - and was rewarded with two Best Supporting Actor nods for his turns in Ron Howard's Apollo 13 and Peter Weir's The Truman Show.

Then came Pollock.

Moving into the the director's chair for the first time, Harris' work both behind and in front of the camera earned him his first Best Actor nomination, critical raves and a gold statuette for costar and Best Supporting Actress Marcia Gay Harden.

Though the film failed to achieve major box office success, Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment will release a special edition of the film on July 24th. Complete with audio commentary, deleted scenes and more, to celebrate the release of the DVD, Harris recently reflected on his career and his ten-year odyssey to bring the life of Jackson Pollock to the screen.

» Interview with Ed Harris
» 'Pollock' review