Q&A: Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Credit: Larry Busacca/Getty Images)

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"Chameleons are my favorite actors, and that's what I want to always be."

This quote would sound bogus coming from Ashton Kutcher. From Joseph Gordon-Levitt, it sounds like the truth.

The Los Angeles native's starring roles include an adolescent baseball fan in "Angels in the Outfield," a lovesick teen in "10 Things I Hate About You," a goofy alien on TV's "3rd Rock From the Sun," a hustler in "Mysterious Skin," an accidental detective in "Brick," an athlete with a head injury in "The Lookout" and a traumatized soldier in "Stop-Loss." Now the 28-year-old actor stars in "(500) Days of Summer," as Tom, a hopeless romantic who falls hard for Summer (Zooey Deschanel, Gordon-Levitt's co-star in 2001's "Manic"), who doesn't believe in long-term love.

A jovial Gordon-Levitt checked in by phone to talk about anything we wanted, other than his personal life.

My fiancee had a crush on you during "3rd Rock from the Sun." Wanna fight about it?
Yeah, dude. You wanna fight? Let's fight. Just be careful. Because I use ninja stars.

What attracted you to "(500) Days of Summer," a love story about people who don't make it?
Well, I think it's honest. I always find that phrase kind of interesting, the notion of stuff "working out." Because at this point in the game, what is "working out," really? Unless, you know... my grandparents got married when they were 20 or something. Tom and Summer, while they don't end up spending the rest of their lives together, both of them learn a lot from each other.

Are you prepared to become, like, OMG, such a heartthrob?
[Laughs] Nah. "No" is the simple answer to that.

In the movie someone mentions that pretty girls think they can get away with treating people like crap. Why do they think that?
Uh, centuries of reinforcement.

What can we do about that?
Um, well, you can either grin and bear it or find a cooler girl to be nice to.

What's the most over-the-top thing you've done for a girl?
Ohhhhhh... here's the thing about my own personal life. What I hope for is to be an actor where an audience can see me as anything. So I try not to publicize my private life because I think it undermines my creative pursuits. I don't want anybody to ever, while they're watching the movie, to think of me as "Joseph Gordon-Levitt." I want them to see the character that I'm playing.

Not the guy who bought a girl 300 bunnies for her birthday.
Yeah, that's not what I want.

Well, when people recognize you, what do they say?
There's two different things that happen, and one of them I love and one of them is less pleasant. Sometimes people are just like, "Oh, you're on TV!" Or "You're famous!" or whatever. And that's always kind of awkward. But sometimes people come up to me and they're like, "Hey, man. That movie you were in. That really meant something to me." Or "It was really funny." Or "It made me think or feel or something." I love that. Because it makes me feel like I'm doing something worthwhile, that I'm creating connection among human beings, and that's what I'm trying to do.

You've done it for a long time. What goes through your head when you watch "Angels in the Outfield"?
Oh, man, I love that movie! It's been awhile since I've watched it. It's a great record of times gone by. It tends to make me grateful more than anything else. And just say thank you a lot to no one in particular.

Are you a pretty big Angels fan as a result?
No, man, I'm a Dodgers fan. Always been a Dodgers fan.

Did they know that about you when you got the role?
Uh, I forget. Maybe. We didn't even shoot it at Angels Stadium. We shot it in Oakland.

Everything I ever believed is a lie!
[Laughs] That's true, man. You shouldn't put so much stock in Hollywood movies.

Damn, OK. You play Cobra Commander in "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," opening in August. Will you have your own action figure?
Yeah, I think they have made those action figures.

How often do you anticipate playing with that?
Oh, dude, I'm definitely gonna play with that. I'm gonna light it on fire and throw it off the balcony.

There's something oddly sadistic about doing that to a small rendering of yourself.
But that's the cool thing about playing with toys.

Find out when "(500) Days of Summer" is opening near you.