Adam Brody is still a thing. I don’t mean to be cruel about it, but I’m kind of surprised he’s still a thing. He was on The O.C. and then he got some smaller, supporting parts in movies and then… nothing. Actors like Justin Timberlake and Andrew Garfield stole his career. All of these fast-talking, boyish, late 20s actors, all competing for the same roles… at the end of the day, I would prefer if Adam got the parts ahead of Justin Timberlake, but what are you going to do? But Adam has a new movie called Damsels in Distress, by writer-director Whit Stillman, who did a criminally under-valued film, The Last Days of Disco. Stillman is like a nouveau Woody Allen, all dialogue-heavy and neurotic. Adam Brody should excel in a Whit Stillman film.

So to promote his new movie, Adam did what so many have done before – he name-dropped Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. You see, Adam had a small part in Mr. and Mrs. Smith. So he used that experience as a headline-grabbing punch line, of course. Well played, Adam. Some highlights from Adam’s HuffPo interview:

Working with Whit Stillman: “I just love Whit Stillman, so it was a no brainer for me… I would have murdered people.” Thankfully, homicide wasn’t necessary for Brody to secure the role of Fred Packenstacker, a “playboy operator” who slowly wins over Violet (Greta Gerwig) and her friends at a prestigious East Coast college. “Damsels” is Stillman’s first film since “The Last Days of Disco” in 1998, meaning the man affectionately called the “WASP Woody Allen” has been away from the big screen for 14 years.

Damsels in Distress: “The truth is, it was such low budget movie and we were so under the gun the whole time, that you were kind of left to your own devices a little bit,” he said when asked about Stillman’s style on set. “At that point, I was so flattered that he trusted me. What I liked most was his approval. I just trust his judgment so much that if I did something and he liked it, I was profoundly happy with myself. The wisdom I gleaned from him was actually from the script.”

Being picky, but not really: “I don’t turn down that much,” Brody allowed. “Here’s what I’d say: Personally, I’m incredibly picky. I’m incredibly opinionated and I don’t like much. But, as a professional actor, I’m very pragmatic. I’m definitely willing to do things that I don’t personally like or certainly love. But I understand the benefits, business-wise. And I like to go to work and I don’t always have to be in love with what I’m doing. Those are two different theories, and so I would say as an actor I’m not all that picky. As a consumer, I certainly am.”

Does that mean he’s making movies he wouldn’t want to see? “[I]t’s funny,” he said. “I have been practical, but when I do look at my resume it does reflect my taste. Some I like more than others, but it does, by and large, reflect my taste, more than I think it would. [Especially] given how many things I’ve been willing to do that I don’t personally care for.”

He admits he has to fight for the big parts: “They don’t make a lot of good movies,” he said. “I don’t even think because of any bad formulaic problem or some studio system necessarily. That’s part of it, but it’s very hard to write something good. It truly is. So they’re few and far between, and everyone is smart and wants to do those things. So it’s competitive. You just get lucky and something smart comes along that you’re right for.”

On Mr. and Mrs. Smith: “In terms [Brad and Angelina], I hooked them up,” he deadpanned. “I was like, ‘Brad, you don’t want to do this, man. This Jen thing, I don’t see it.’ And he heeded my advice, and I’m happy for him.”

[From HuffPo]

I know I shilled this as an uncool Bermuda Triangle story, but I ended up much more interested in Adam’s quotes about Hollywood. He seems oddly… Zen about the whole thing. I like the way he reconciles – intellectually – taking any project that he can get, and I like that he’s kind of a snobby bitch about it. So I had to look up his IMDB – he’s been working consistently since The O.C., just not on many big projects. He does a lot of smaller budget stuff, so maybe he’s trying to become, like, the dude version of Chloe Sevigny? Eh, there are worse things.

Photos courtesy of WENN.