New York — At 55 years old, with more than four decades in the industry and nearly 90 films to his name, Ethan Hawke is having the moment he deserves. For the first time, he was nominated for Best Actor at the 2026 Academy Awards for his visceral portrayal of legendary Broadway lyricist Lorenz Hart in “Blue Moon.” It is a role he spent nearly 10 years preparing for.
What strikes you most when you talk to him is that, more than four decades later, the excitement and curiosity is still on the surface — the same pure joy of the craft you’d expect from an actor just starting out, not someone with decades behind him. When talking to him, you can feel how much he loves what he does – there is genuine gratitude in every word, like someone who truly appreciates that he does this for a living. And with Lorenz Hart, he fell in love again.
He took time out of rehearsals for Season 2 of “The Lowdown” to talk to me, and his passion for the Oscar-nominated “Blue Moon” was not exactly waning. We talked about saying goodbye to this extraordinary figure, the memories of his career that stick with him (Denzel, we’re talking about you), and what Lorenz Hart himself would say if given the opportunity.
The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Joel Gargiulo: “You’ve been working on this character for about 10 years before you step foot on set, and then you’re shooting for 15 days. What’s it like when you get to know someone intimately, someone you’ve never met physically before, and then you become like them, but then you have to say goodbye to them?”
Ethan Hawke“That’s the thing that no one talks about. We spend all this time trying to figure out: Who is the character? What’s he thinking? What’s his watch like? How does he do his hair? You read books, you look at lyrics. For Lorenz Hart, a lot of his identity, it’s in his lyrics. And then how to say goodbye is really difficult, because it becomes… The most relatable example is when you were a kid and you went to summer camp and you had these incredible experiences – you make great friends, you have counselors who really care about you – and then You come home and no one knows what happened, and you feel changed, but no one knows.
For this part, I had to shave the top of my head all the way back so I could do that combing. It looked ridiculous. By the time I got to the closing ceremony, I looked like Telly Savalas. When we finished, the first thing I did was completely shave the rest of my head. Then we were shooting in Ireland – I woke up the next day, went for a walk on the beach for six hours, and just started coming to terms with it. Because that’s the hard thing – when you get a great role as an actor, it’s really rare that you know you have a chance. Like a real, real, amazing moment.”
Joel Gargiulo: “You must know that going in.”
Ethan Hawke: “I knew it. I’d never been asked to work so hard before, and I knew it was a great opportunity. You also know that you can never do what you want, but I sat there by the ocean in Dublin saying goodbye: I did my best. I didn’t do it the way I wanted to, but I did my best every day. I felt good about that. I said goodbye, put my little jacket on, and took the plane home.”
Joel Gargiulo: “This is the first Best Actor [Academy Award] Nominate your career. I’ve been at this for over four decades, and have made nearly 90 films. What does this moment really mean to you?
Ethan HawkeOr, “You don’t make a movie or go on stage or make anything just to send it out into the void without anyone noticing. That’s never happened to me before, so I’d be lying if I said it didn’t feel really good. But mostly what feels great is the look on your face when you talk about the movie. Or, I was flying to London and there were people in the baggage claim on the plane who saw it. They had tears in their eyes. That’s a really good feeling, because a lot of times you work really hard on a movie and no one sees it. Or You don’t work hard and everyone sees it, and you get recognition you don’t deserve. I made this movie with one of my best friends. We believed in the script. Sitting there at baggage claim and listening to strangers write, I thought, “I know, this is exactly how we felt.”
Joel Gargiulo: “I watched this movie four times before we met with friends. I should have been sad watching Lorenz Hart, but I felt exhilarated. I never wanted him to leave the screen. I was sad when it was over.”
Ethan Hawke: “It’s a fairly heartbreaking story, but it’s told with a lot of intelligence. If you listen to the Rodgers and Hart songbook, there’s a lot of intelligence in it. There’s sadness, there’s big themes and deep emotions, but it’s always told with a little bit of silliness. That’s what Rick and I really wanted in the movie.”
Joel Gargiulo: “This is a New York story, set in a New York institution – Sardi. As a New Yorker, can you talk about the pride you feel in this film?”
Ethan Hawke: “It feels so good. I grew up admiring those people on that wall at Sardi’s, and I want to touch upon the legends of Broadway. It’s a mysterious little club — people who have achieved a level of excellence in their chosen craft. The characters in this movie are all over the world, but most of them are drawn to New York. They end up coming to Broadway. To make a movie that celebrates New York in this way is wonderful.”
Joel Gargiulo: “There’s an old saying that I love, that came from my father, ‘I would give a million tomorrow for yesterday.’ I think about that quote daily. Thinking about all of your work, if you could go back and relive one professional moment — one just yesterday — what would you have in mind?”
Ethan Hawke: “When I was in my early 20s, a group of friends and I started a theater company. The cost of a ticket was $10. We would rush out and pass out flyers. We would put on plays for our friends. It was impossible to cast anyone over 30, because we didn’t have anyone over 30 in the company. We built sets, rented U-Hauls, hit up sets, and did midnight readings. In hindsight, I realize that those years shaped me – The way I was thinking about the way I approach rehearsals, the way I approach what we do for a living, I would love to revisit a bunch of those evenings and see those people again.
Joel Gargiulo: “When I say ‘Dead Poets Society,’ what story emerges?”
Ethan Hawke: “The first time we rehearsed with Robin Williams, I was so nervous. He was such a genius. We were all 17 or 18, really learning how to rehearse. Norman Lloyd played the headmaster – he was in Orson Welles’ Mercury Theater Company. He kept saying to us: ‘You don’t know you’re going to be thinking about today for the rest of your life.’ I remember thinking, ‘You funny old man.’ And I’ve thought about that all my life.”
Then I remember one time Robert Sean Leonard and I went to dinner in New York right after the movie came out. A whole group of people in the restaurant got up and stood at their tables and said: Captain, Captain. And then the whole place exploded in applause. “Bobby and I were just blown away.”
Joel Gargiulo:And what when I say “training day?”
Ethan Hawke: “Denzel! One of the greatest actors in the history of the profession. To ride shotgun with him, to run lines with him, to watch him work, to try not to let him down. Antoine Fuqua was directing, driving through L.A., and it was so intense. I was 30 and I knew that didn’t happen very often. I’m working with one of the best actors, and I have a great role and a great director. That was one of the best working experiences of my life.”
Joel Gargiulo: “And the explorers?”
Ethan Hawke: “I’m really thinking about River. That’s what stayed with me. He and I snuck into a diner with a big quarters thing and tried to buy a pack of Camel cigarettes. We were obsessed with James Dean — we were convinced James Dean smoked — but neither of us had ever smoked before. We went out to a football field and smoked our first cigarette together. That’s the thing I remember.”
Joel Gargiulo: “And when I say blue moon?”
Ethan Hawke“What sticks out in my mind is my friendship with Bobby Cannavale. He would run the lines with me every day. It was a lot of work and I had down moments, and he would always look at me and say, ‘You’ve got this, bro.’ I’ve got this. Not for nothing, I think you could do a little better.’ You know, that’s Bobby. His unwavering support and belief in me meant everything. And when I think about the actual performance of the film, I think about the eye contact with the other actors – Andrew Scott, Margaret Qualley, Bobby – all of them really attracted me every day. I’ll always remember their faces.”
Joel Gargiulo: “If you could sit next to Lorenz Hart, in your imagination, and tell him anything — after the movie, after the Oscar nomination — what would you tell him?”
Ethan Hawke: “Mostly I want to listen, because he’s so funny. He’s one of the greatest wits of all time. So mostly I want to ask him: How was Pal Joey’s opening night? And let him scream. What I want to say is: Thank you, and forgive me for any mistake I’ve made. I think he’ll be glad we’re talking about it at all. He loved what he did so much, loved his poetry so much. I think he’ll be so happy that ‘my funny darling’ still lives on in consciousness. A few words have cheated death.”
Joel Gargiulo: “You seem to be in a beautiful place in life right now – when it’s family and work, when it’s all coming together in this way. I hope you’re enjoying this moment as much as you seem to be enjoying it.”
Ethan Hawke: “I’m trying. I’m trying to stay present and enjoy it all.”
Joel Gargiulo: “Congratulations on everything…see you at the Oscars!”
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