Replicating the success of the book and the miniseries in a two hour film is a tall order: Mr. le Carré’s novels require intense concentration, and are known for their convoluted plots [For more, go to "The Perplexing Case of the Cerebral Thriller."] But the film, by Swedish director Tomas Alfredson (“Let the Right One In”) was a runaway hit in the U.K., where it spent three weeks at the top of the box office charts. It is also generating best actor buzz for Gary Oldman, who plays protagonist George Smiley. The film, which is being distributed in the U.S. by Focus Features, opens on Dec. 9.
Mr. Jones’s Hollywood career began to take off in 2006, when he starred in “Infamous” as Truman Capote. The film got good reviews but was a box office flop—it opened a year after Philip Seymour Hoffman’s Oscar winning star turn in “Capote”—generating a paltry $2.6 million globally. Since then, Mr. Jones has been cast in several Hollywood productions, including “Frost/Nixon,” “W.,” “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1,” “My Week with Marilyn,” and the much anticipated “Hunger Games,” which comes out in March.
Speakeasy caught up with Mr. Jones while he was shooting “Snow White and the Huntsman” to talk about his latest role, as the politically connected but untalented spy Percy Alleline, in “Tinker Tailor,” and his career. Excerpts:
It’s interesting that you were in “Infamous,” which had a double and now you’re doing “Snow White and the Huntsman,” which also has a competing production “Mirror, Mirror” starring Julia Roberts as the Evil Queen.
Oh please, don’t even go there. I am doing this TV thing—this ITV/ABC version of Titanic. It’s a four part series. I was at the premiere of “My Week with Marilyn” last night and [actor] Derek Jacobi was there and he said “I’ve just been shooting this Titanic thing for TV” and it’s a totally different one. So if you ever want to make just one movie, don’t hire me, because there will always be some other movie being made. Oh my lord.
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