Michael Discusses How Being Funny Made Him Love Acting Again, Leaving Acting for Good, his Breakup with Scarlett, Why He is 100% Over Mel, How Olivia Wilde Gave Him the Best Orgasm He Ever Had By Just Kissing Him, Wishing he Was British, and Why He Chooses to Live with Depression and not Take Anti-Depressants.
THE BEAUTY WITHIN THE SADNESS
Michael Reese Meyers is tired. His eyes are glazed over and seem defeated. He admits he got only 4 hours of sleep the night before. He's tired of paparazzi. Tired of relationships not working. Tired of having to lie to his agent about why he is not reading scripts. Tired of photo shoots (there's a reason there are only two pictures of him in this article, he refuses to do anymore). He is tired of doing interviews. The first thing he says to me when I walk into his sunbathed hotel room is "this is my last interview". The idea of being some recluse who rarely is seen on camera or in print unless he has a movie to promote (and even then he says "I might not even show up to that shit anymore either") seems quite appealing to him right about now. He says while he is a fan of social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter (he is active on both, especially Facebook) a part of him wants to leave them behind as well. "All the richest and most successful people I know don't have Facebook" Meyers says. "They don't go online. They don't do an interview every 3 to 6 months where they have to chronicle where their life is. It's just all kind of, too much ya know?" After a sip of his cranberry grape juice (he says he is "off caffeine" due to recent doctor's orders) and a few bites of his french toast, he takes back much of what he just ranted about and conceded "I mean, who am I kidding, I love that stuff. Being able to communicate with my fans. I probably won't disappear off the face of the planet, but I just don't feel the need to be so public with all my shit anymore". Meyers is, as he always was, ever the contradiction.
He knows he is doing this to promote his new comedy film "Ted", a movie he is genuinely excited about. "My last film didn't really hit the way I wanted it to hit. That was kind of a bummer. But this (film) I think is really gonna catch fire. It's fucking hilarious". Meyers has never done a comedy before, and the challenge of being funny was intriguing to him. In a way, it revitalized his passion for the craft of acting, which he has admitted in several recent interviews, had been waning. "I just saw no new challenge. Got no catharsis anymore from all the rage and the pain. I once thought acting could be my therapy and it was for a while. But now music does that for me. So acting got boring. I needed a change. And comedy provided that". Meyers plays an unemployed Boston stoner in the comedy which opens April 18th whose best friend is a talking stuffed teddy bear, voiced by Seth MacFarlane of Family Guy fame. Seth, who also wrote and directed the R rated film, allowed Meyers to pick his co-star. "I chose Amy Adams for a couple reasons. First, she's one of the best actresses working today. Also, because she nailed the Boston accent in The Fighter. Third she is no comedy genius so I knew she wouldn't act circles around me. I needed someone who was as new to this as I was so we could discover it together. Plus she's a sweetheart and so lovable".
LEAVING ACTING FOR DIRECTING:
Making the film opened his eyes to the world of comedy and he now plans to direct a few himself. "I think a lot about the mark I'm going to leave behind and I really wanna make films that say something. Something this generation needs to hear. I feel our biggest issue is the breakdown of relationships. The home, the common marriage, men and women trusting each other, loving each other, getting together and then STAYING together. We lost that. I have seen so much of it. I can't remember a time both men AND women have been so disinterested in finding love and settling down. They've just given up. That scares me. And the ones out there who still do wanna find it, have no idea where to look and what they are doing wrong. I really enjoyed films like 500 Days of Summer, Don Jon, and That Awkward Moment. Stuff like that. Romantic comedies from the guy's perspective that don't sugar coat. That really tackle the issues, but in a humorous way. I have been writing some scripts recently over the past 2 years or so that I think really tackle those issues in a funny and relevant way and there's no one else I trust enough to give them to, so I figure, why not just direct them myself. THESE projects are what have me and keep me excited about filmmaking. Not some drama where I gotta scream or cry or kill someone. That doesn't interest me anymore." Meyers confesses he has given much thought to leaving acting for good to focus on just directing and music. "The director is the author. He tells the story. The actor is just the paint brush, but the director is the painter. I wanna be the painter."
SCARLETT BREAKUP:
During the past 6 months he has been involved in arguably Hollywood's most talked about relationship, one between him and sexy siren Scarlett Johansson. They met in 2005 when they co-starred in Woody Allen's "Desire" thriller together but did not become close until 2012 when she came to one of his Chants of Reign concerts. According to Meyers they went on a date that was unsuccessful but in August 2013 they tried again with much better results. But it was announced a few weeks prior to this interview the pair had gone their separate ways. While the Michael Reese Meyers of the past would normally be eager and open to discussing such a topic and even willing to bash the other person if he felt the breakup was their fault, the new Meyers seems angry that Scarlett was even brought up. "I have nothing bad to say about her. It's an ongoing situation, so, we'll see what happens". Other than conceding the fact he considers their current situation more of a "break" then full on "break up", he is extremely reluctant to divulge what caused it or elaborate further. He gets more prickly as I keep pushing for answers and eventually explodes "Look, sometimes people, couples, need their space, ya know? To figure out if they want the same thing, the same future. We're trying to figure that out right now."
BEING OVER MEL AND ONCE WISHING HE WAS BRITISH:
His most famous breakup was with Twilight star Mel Morley, his British co-star from The Best Tears (and later Inception). It put him through so much heartache he infamously tattooed her name Mel on his neck and he essentially formed his band Chants of Reign mainly just to purge his feelings for her into musical form. When I bring up her name he has no reaction on his face. Not anger. Not sadness. Not joy. Nothing. He jokes with a smile "She seems like so long ago". When I ask if he still ever thinks about her he says with relief audible in his voice "You know for the first time, I can honestly say, no, I don't ever ever think about her. I think you can get lost in the idea of what someone COULD be or who you WANT them to be but because of that fantasy, you choose to ignore who they really are. After being with some great girls since her, and seeing how she treats guys, how she treated me, it just became obvious she's one who can't be saved. She's trouble. She's damaged. And I was pretty damaged to think I deserve that. That I wanna go on that journey to try and salvage some happiness from that situation but I am not that guy anymore. And I don't want that in my life. I've moved on. I have no desire or yearning anymore for her. I try to search for why I fell so hard and all I can dig up is lust and wishful thinking but there was nothing real tangible there. No real love. All we did was fight and fuck. That's not a relationship".
When I ask how did he ever convince himself it could work and why he feels other people make the same mistake in relationships, he lights up and says with enthusiasm and profound insight: "Listen, sometimes we wish we were someone else. And we wish a person we meet could date us and that would then somehow make us feel more like that person we wish we could be. You get what I'm saying? People ask, why do some nice girls date bad boys. I say, it's because somewhere deep down inside, she wants to be bad. She's too afraid to do it on her own, but in her mind she thinks, spending time with this bad guy will make me bad too. It's like back in high school when you tried to hang with the cool popular kids thinking that somehow through osmosis or something it would rub off on you and you'd become cool and popular too. Dating is the same way. We all have this weird fantasy of the type of couple we wanna be in. How we would hold hands. How we'd dress. How we'd talk to each other. How we'd have sex. The places we'd go. The swag we would have and how people see us when we walk down the street ya know, haha. Like, for a long time I wanted to be some smooth James Bond-like English guy that British girls love and a part of me in some weird sick way felt, if she loved me, I could be that guy. That guy I dreamed about being in my mind. We'd be this sexy British couple. The new Sid and Nancy ya know? David and Victoria Beckham or something, haha. But that was a fantasy. That's not me. I'm not Ed Westwick. I'm not Daniel Craig. I'm not Alex Pettyfer or you know, whichever British male model whose out there. I'm me. This is what you see. You don't see me how I saw myself, at least not on the outside. And people fall for what they see. So I had to let go of that. I think a lot of people have this false vision of who they wanna be and who that ideal person would date and we feel if we date said person, we will magically become who we wanna be but it doesn't work that way. You have to either already be that person or become that person for people to see you that way. It doesn't work the other way around. Fact of the matter is, people who think that way, the way others see us isn't how we see ourselves. It's not congruent. So, you know, you end up reaching outside your grasp. It's all about self hatred. We have to live within our circles. Unfortunately that's how the human race works. I wanted to be in her circle so bad but I wasn't and it shattered me. Really fucked me up. But now I don't wanna be that guy anymore and therefore I don't want her. I just wanna be me and be with someone who wants me. Me for me. The real me that you and I both see, if that makes any sense."
OLIVIA WILDE FLING:
The one girl he is not so completely over yet is his Malibu's Most Wanted and Truth or Die co-star Olivia Wilde. While many knew the two were good friends who were starting a movie production company together in 2012, few knew that something romantic was brewing behind the scenes. Or almost did anyway. When I ask "what went down with Olivia?" Michael tenses up, becomes distant, rubs his face in a stressful manner, and his demeanor slowly shifts from content to longing. It's clear it's a sore subject and one that brings up many emotions for him, many of which not very good. I immediately sense this and tell him we do not have to discuss this but he is now an open book and is ready to clear the air on what happened between the two. As Meyers tells it, when they first met on the set of 2006's Malibu's Most Wanted (in which they only shared one scene together), he was "so depressed" over his breakup with Kristen Bell he was going through, that he barely took in much of the experience of even making that film much less took the time to get to know anyone. All he remembered of Emile Hirsch (whom he shared most of his scenes with) was finding him "kind of annoying, but maybe that was him being in character all the time" and of Justin Timberlake he recalls "how hard Justin wanted to give a good performance and be taken serious. I think he did a great job". Only thing about Olivia he recalls was her seeming like an "air headed party girl" and "she fucked up my nose" (he points to a scar on the bridge of his nose he still has as a result of their fight scene on that shoot where she accidentally stabbed him in the face with her French manicured finger nail). He says doctors and agents have asked him to remove it but he procrastinates on doing so since he sees it as "A badge of honor. Something to remember her by. It's funny since she came back into my life years later and scarred me in a much more personal way anyway."
When I investigate into how that came about he pauses for a moment, closes his eyes, and shakes his head as if he regrets having experienced any of it all. "I didn't see it coming. With most girls you know. You know from the first moment you look at them. 'I'm gonna fall for this girl. She's special.' But not with her. We truly started off as friends. What happened was after Malibu, we went our separate ways. Didn't speak for years. Then in 2012 we bump into each other at some bar in New York and she's a totally different person. So smart, mature, just different. A real woman. Not the blonde bimbo she seemed to be back in 2005. Again, maybe that was her just being in character at the time, I dunno. But we started talking about my band, about acting, business, her dreams of producing and directing, how she loved my movie I directed Look At Me Now, all sorts of stuff. We agreed to start a company together and join forces you know. Combine her interests and mine, her connections with mine. See what happens. It was great. I started to really respect her. But it was a lot of work. Getting the paperwork together. Hiring assistants. It was crazy. But genuinely it started off as just business, but slowly it turned into something more. She just has something about her. Maybe it comes from her modeling days but she has a way of walking. Like she's always on the runway. Like she just knows she's the shit. Her swagger. How she carries herself. Her sense of fashion. The way she crosses her legs. Everything about her, I dunno. She's just so downtown Manhattan chic. That's her scene. It's so elegant and sexy. It's so fucking sexy. I got hypnotized by her. Very quickly at that point. And her eyes. She has these eyes that will kill you. Just kill you. And she knows how to use them, believe me. She knows just how to look at you and get what she wants from you."
He continues: "But anyway, I went into business with her and started this production company and part of me was using it as a way to get close to her. I knew she was having problems with the guy she was with at the time. I was trying to find my way in. We became very close. Spending many many months together for much of late 2012 and early 2013. Between filming the movie we did together plus the time we were spending on the company, it was just a lot. Telling each other deep dark personal things. Really getting to know each other. I thought it was becoming, I dunno, something. Anyway, I started to fall really hard for her but was waiting for just the right time to say something." Meanwhile he slowly started to realize her actions didn't back up all her talk when it came to their company. "She was incredibly lazy, didn't make phone calls or send e-mails or do any of the tasks I wanted her to. I was the one doing all the work, then I'd read in interviews where she'd talk about stuff as if she was the one who did it and I would get pissed like, 'who the fuck are you to take credit for MY hard work?' You know? So that was the first warning sign of something wrong. Anyway one day she finally tells me it's over between her and the guy, but before I can even make my move she admits she's already onto the next guy. Like in the very same conversation. She's like 'yea me and so and so broke up 4 months ago, I'm with so and so now'. That really pissed me off. Anyway at some point in that new relationship he cheated and they took a break. This was when me and her hooked up for the first time. I'm telling you the sex was incredible. Maybe the best I ever had. But she's the type to leave before the guy wakes up. Just like in the movies you know, haha? So I could tell she wasn't the romantic type. In fact to be completely honest, we only did it twice. The first time was full on but the second we had just come back from the gym, were both dead tired, and just decided to kiss. Then I go, let me stick it in. So I put it in, not humping or anything, just on top of her making out, so slow, so sensual, it was like time just stopped. It was electric. Then within 2 minutes I just exploded. I think it was the best orgasm of my life. There's a song on our new album dedicated to that moment. It's my favorite song on the record. When you see the title of the song and how we spell he word wild, you'll know which song it is, haha."
When I ask what ultimately caused everything to fall apart he says: "It was a trio of things. One was on a night where I hinted to her that I loved her and she just changed the subject. It was such a crazy moment. I remember me and her met up at a bar one night in New York to discuss how to fix my issues with her lack of production with our company and she swore she'd do better, as usual. Then I mentioned to her how I had been complaining to a friend about how I always come this close to firing her but always keep her and I said to her he had an explanation for why I always do that. She goes "yea, power struggle" and I go no, he told me "bro, you're in love with her". She laughed it off and was like, "yea right, you're not are you" or something and I laugh and go of course not, but the way I was looking into her eyes and the way I said of course not, it was pretty obvious I was hinting that I kind of was. And she knew. She knew. I could see it in her eyes. And she looked at me, let the moment pass, then looked away and changed the subject. Like 'you know what happened to me the other day, some fan asked me to marry him, talk about people being in love with me...hehe'. I was like UGH! You know? And the thing was, I made that story up. There was no friend. I just made that story up to make her think someone else sees my behavior towards her as a guy whose too in love to cut her loose. That was my way of letting her know. Didn't work I guess. So that was strike one. Strike two was when she was a no show for my 29th birthday party bash I had last year. I begged her to come. I said 'it won't be the same without you'. She instead went on some trip to Costa Rica that she told me was for some charity event, and she could meet rich investors who could give our company money, so I was like, okay I'll give you a pass. Good luck out there and bring back some good connects. But strike three came when I found out that was all a lie. She went there with the guy she had been seeing. The one who cheated. Turns out there was no charity event. Turns out they were trying to work things out. So that's when I lost it and we had this really bad fight. I mean really bad. I told her some really bad things letting her know how I feel about what she was doing and she was like "don't ever speak to me again". So I didn't. This was last June or July 2013. We haven't spoke since. And I'm glad." I ask him if she is still with this guy and Meyers quickly responds "They're engaged".
HIS HEALTH:
After a recent stay at the hospital Meyers learned he has chronic panic disorder. Since 2010 he has been suffering from panic attacks but refuses to take any medication to deal with the issue. "I have been dealing with depression most of my life. I never took one pill for that in my life and I never will. It has been proven many anti-depressants make you wanna kill yourself. I don't want that to happen to me. So I deal with it. And all the Zoloft and Xanax crap that is supposed to help you with panic attacks and anxiety and shit, that shit has just as many side effects that really fuck you up, so no thanks. I can deal with this on my own. I have my friends, my family, music, movies, food, laughter, alcohol, haha. There are so many natural and healthy ways to deal with your shit. Drugs never help the problem, they just make it worse. I know that first hand." He admits he still struggles from time to time with pain killers but insists he isn't addicted and hasn't done them in a while. "Back when I did The Fighter I broke my jaw and some ribs so (the pain killer addiction) came back then. When I hurt my feet on the set of Alien: Genesis, same thing. Back to the pills. But when I am feeling okay it's cool. I don't do them to get high. Only when I have pain. But when I don't, I never touch them. So that's progress I guess."
CONCLUSION:
At the conclusion of our interview Meyers shakes my hand and says "That was cool man. I got a lot off my mind". He seems more at ease. At ease with the concept of interviews again and being forthcoming in them, something that has always been his trademark but now seems to be running from. He seems more okay with the idea that he can be brutally honest and not be seen as the "relationship snitch" or "Male Taylor Swift" (who is known to bash her ex-boyfriends in the press and her songs with overly personal information and candor). In a way, acting doesn't have to be his therapy. Interviews can. He knows this is why his fan love him. Why his haters hate him. But as he discovered in this very article, as long as he accepting of being him and not trying to be someone else, everything is as it should be. Besides, he gets paid to pretend to be other people on set. Sometimes it's best to leave that there and you know, just be yourself in real life. Some of us prefer that guy anyway.
