How unfair can life be? Let’s list just some of the assets Matt Schulze possesses: brains–he’s into Eastern philosophy; artistic talent–he acts, paints, sings and writes and plays music; soul–he believes in love and writes poetry; not to mention he has the looks of an international model. Of course, that’s how Matt got his start, modeling for Levi’s jeans.
But Matt wasn’t about to just live on his looks, which he put on the line for The Fast and the Furious. Matt bulked up, grew a beard and dyed his hair a different color for the sake of his craft. Plus, for kicks, that was Matt you saw on screen riding on the hood of a speeding semi.
Matt took time out of his incredibly busy life–he just finished filing Blade 2 with Wesley Snipes in Prague–for a phone call that revealed the depth behind the face. We agreed that the interview wouldn’t be too serious, a promise we broke with the very first question.
Your biography from your publicist calls you brooding and enigmatic. Why is that? Are you brooding and enigmatic?
Matt Schulze: I think it’s because I’ve tried to live on the outside of the rules that society and people have set up. Or it was something that I invented in my mind that I thought I was, but maybe I was actually conforming by the rules. I was always hidden and lurking in the shadows, so people always say that about me. [laughs] I guess there is a truth to it.
Is that how you would describe yourself now?
Schulze: Yeah, but I think I’ve tried to change that, to be honest with you. I lived a long time like that, and now I’ve done a lot of self-exploration, internally, by reading and just by hiding away–I don’t want to live by those terms anymore.
You attended the Atlanta Institute of Music as a teenager. What’s your favorite kind of music?
Schulze: I love classical music. Yes, I was in a conservatory when I was younger and played guitar and all that stuff, so I also love rock. I try to combine the two–I play music all the time, and those are my favorites.
Who are your musical idols? Who would you like to play with, whose music inspires you?
Schulze: As far as rock groups, I really like Stone Temple Pilots. As for classical composers, it’s Bach. I love Paganini, too, the Italian composer who would break strings during a performance and finish playing on just one string. Someone I would have loved to play with is Jimi Hendrix.
We’ve interviewed dozens of Hollywood stars and asked most of them about their musical taste. You’re the first to mention Paganini. Do you find that your love of classical music sets you apart from other actors?
Schulze: I just did a movie in Prague, Blade 2, and I met a woman there, an actress, and we spent a lot of time together. She actually enjoys classical music, knew who Paganini was, and it was the first time I had met a woman who had similar musical taste to my own. I think they are out there.
Okay, thanks for the segue opportunity. What was it like making Blade 2, and what’s it like working with Wesley Snipes?
Schulze: It was great. I think he’s very talented. I learned a lot in the way of his ability to become intimate with the camera, which is a special thing that I was able to take away from that experience.
Getting back to this woman you mentioned meeting in Prague, is there a special someone in your life?
Schulze: [laughs] Sometimes.
Okay, is there ONE specific person in your life?
Schulze: [laughs] Sometimes.
Oh, I get it now. I’m slow on Wednesdays. One someone, some of the time. What’s the most romantic thing you’ve done for her?
Schulze: I write her poetry every day. And I think that’s pretty romantic.
Hey, you’re a sensitive guy!
Schulze: I am–I love her. You meet some people and you want to express your love for them. I’ve been a hell raiser my whole life, fighting my way through the world. Now, I’m trying to do the opposite, enjoy feelings and all the other things I’ve passed up along the way.
You write her poetry. What’s the most romantic thing she’s done for you?
Schulze: Just her love is enough for me. That’s it.
That’s SO soulful, man.
Schulze: [laughs] That’s the most beautiful thing she gives me: when someone looks into your eyes and you know they care about, they breathe life into you. I love that.
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Non-sequiter alert: how did you know you wanted to get involved in show business, and at what age?
Schulze: I think from the time I was a kid I’ve been an entertainer. I’ve always had the ability to play characters. When I came to California I was overwhelmed that you could do this and get paid for it, make a living on it, and be creative within this art form. Without, at least for me, having to go and get a regular job.
Have you ever held a “regular” job?
Schulze: Yeah, and I got fired. [laughs] I didn’t do well in regular jobs. When I was 17 I taught music, I had 65 students a week, and I did that for a year. So that’s pretty regular. But it was great to give the gift of music to people, seeing them learn. It’s great to influence young people in a creative way.
Other than music lessons, what was your first paying entertainment job?
Schulze: It was modeling. I did the Levi’s campaign, which I did when I was about 21. I did a bunch of the campaigns, and I did a runway show in Italy.
Okay, so you’re 21 and you hit the big time. What did you do with that first check?
Schulze: I bought a guitar. [laughs] I spent all–I’ve always spent–all my money on musical equipment. That’s all I buy.
Doing all these modeling gigs, there are plenty of women standing around telling you that you’re sexy. Do you think you’re sexy?
Schulze: At that time I did. I was wreaking havoc on the world, living the high life, travelling. It’s different now, because I get some of that same treatment but I have a better perspective on life. I was out of my mind at that point.
What do you find sexy about women?
Schulze: Lips. Lips and eyes. And cheekbones.
Basically, you’re a face guy.
Schulze: Yes. To me it’s like I look at their faces and [it] leads right inside to their hearts. You can see someone’s soul in their face.
We’ve talked about music and poetry. But I know you’re also into painting…
Schulze: Abstract painting, that is. I approach music and acting the same way, through spontaneous improvisation. I never really try to rehearse anything, do it over and over, except when we’re inside a take. And I just love that way with art. Before they did all those shows on Jackson Pollock, I loved the way he formulated his paintings, I loved Basquiat–I was into the whole Beat generation, Kerouac, etc., and all those artists talked about that and Kerouac, so I just got in the middle of being spontaneous. And I also loved, for the most part, the way that painters lived their lives–waking up and creating beauty.
Between the singing, the painting, the acting, the music, what’s the one discipline you are best at?
Schulze: I think it’s acting. It’s easiest for me. That I can do without thinking, and I’m able to be in the moment. It’s taken me a long time to get to that spontaneous level that I was talking about. My only regret is that I haven’t gotten the reach of stories that I want to do yet. When I get [to do those stories], then I think people will see that this is what I am really good at. I want to bring something real and human, that you can touch, even though it is cinematic.
You bulked up for The Fast and the Furious. What did you do to bulk up?
Schulze: I’ve just been in the gym like crazy. I spend four hours a day there and it’s like a meditation for me.
Other than the bulking up, you grew a beard and changed your hair color for The Fast and the Furious…
Schulze: I didn’t have to do any of that. I developed all that for the character. If you looked at the script, there was nothing there about my character. I basically wrote most of my own stuff and brought that character to life. I developed everything, from what he wore on up. They basically gave me total creative freedom with my character, Vince.
The producers took a risk with pretty much everybody being relative unknowns at this point, other than Vin [Diesel] who’s done a few movies, so they kind of let pretty much everyone exist and be who they were. It was up to them to come to the table if they had an idea. If it was good, then they let you run with it.
Guylaine, my colleague who reviewed the movie, says it’s one of the best actioners she’s seen, the most fun movie she’s seen in a year. Was it as fun to make?
Schulze: It was. I tell people that and they look at me funny. Everybody from the cinematographer to the second A.D. was a pleasure to work with. I haven’t found that since, and I may never find that again. It was unbelievable.
You have your music, your painting, your working out, not to mention the acting, is there time in your life for anything else?
Schulze: Therapy. [laughs]
