Joel Michaely

"I was in elementary school walking talking IMDB page. (TV) is the land of the unrealistic pretty people only. I'd like to break that down one day and lead a wave of more realistic people being represented."

Joel

Michaely

Photo credit: Joshua Arbour / jpshuaaphotography.com

Q. Thanks for interviewing with us. Tell everyone who you are and what you do?

A. Oh! Wow (laughs)... I’m Joel

Michaely and I’m an actor and a movie producer. I’ve been fortunate enough to work in film since my first movie I was in

Can’t Hardly Wait up until my current films that come out this month, Wild Indian which I costar in and executive produced with a Native American cast including Michael Greyeyes,

Chaske Spencer, along with Jessie Eisenberg, Kate

Bosworth, and myself. I also costar in The Card Counter by the brilliant Paul Schrader starring

Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, and Willem Dafoe. So basically,

I juggle two full-time careers and still just living on indie film money. Feel free to have the studios and TV networks give me a buzz.

Q. What made you want to Pursue a career in acting?

A. I was one of those kids that came out of the womb singing, dancing, performing, and telling stories and jokes. My form of escapism has always been watching movies and television and reading books.

So, I knew from a very early age that I wanted to perform and entertain and create things. By the time I was nine years old I had a subscription to Daily Variety and would run to the mailbox every single day looking for my newspaper discussing everything about the Entertainment industry — not the average nine-year-old reading material, but I could tell you every single movie’s box office and every single person involved in it. I was in elementary school walking, talking IMDB page. I just had to focus on the prize and am fortunate enough to have made a living in the arts, acting and producing films.

Q. Who has been some of your biggest influences?

A. Oh man. Philip Seymour Hoffman has always been a role model for me as a performer. I feel like he set the bar for character actors. I looked up to a lot of character actors like myself: Charles Durning, Ned Beatty, Michael Jeter,

Robin Williams. There have always been several actors who were inspiring, but I’m selecting those because they fell into the category of people who look more like me. Otherwise, film and television tend to cast prettier versions of real life, which is a category that I do not fall in. These guys were more real-life driven, appearancewise, so I gravitated towards them. On a personal level the biggest influence in my life was my grandmother, Pat

Drake.

Q. Let’s talk about this upcoming film “The Comeback

Trail” and what we can look forward to?

A. Oooooh. The Comeback Trail is a really fun jaunt. It’s the perfect cure for the blues — the blues and the blahs.

It stars Robert DeNiro, Tommy Lee Jones, Morgan

Freeman, Zach Braff and Emile Hirsch, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to be acting opposite all of those luminaries every single day. I got to play Andre, the first AD of the film Robert DeNiro is producing within the film, and total chaos ensues. It’s very funny, plays really well with audiences, and people seem to walk away with big smiles on their faces.

Q. Out of all the Movies you have been in which one is your favorite?

A. That’s like picking a favorite child: totally easy to do... in private. But this being public,

I would say I love many of my movies for many different reasons, but the three movies

I’m known for the most are probably my favorites: But I’m a

Cheerleader, Can’t Hardly Wait, and The Rules of Attraction. I’m hoping that my new run of films resonates with audience’s half as much as those movies do, in which case I’ll be a very happy camper.

Q. What are the most important attributes of successful leaders today?

A. I think a successful leader really has to listen and accept the fact that they are flawed, and that they need to communicate with others to truly lead in a formidable fashion. interesting roles, but it’s a fight I will continue to fight and hope that I can overcome it. Still, particularly in television, they do not cast actors that are more real looking or weird looking. They tend to focus on a particular aesthetic that they like to put in the television universe. For example, I could never play a role on any show on the CW network. They wouldn't even have a normal looking person play a waiter on the network. Land of the unrealistic pretty people only. I’d like to break that down one day and lead a wave of more realistic people being represented in front of the cameras.

Q. As a male leader what has been the most significant barrier in your career?

A. I feel like from the beginning of my career because of my physicality they did not know where to put me.

Am I an Orson

Welles type? Am

I just a comedic joke? Am I a sight gag? It was very difficult to have people not want to see me for different roles because of my physicality and the way I come across. It’s been an uphill battle from day one to be considered as more than surface level and an ability to take on more

Q. What is your most memorable achievement or accomplishment you’ve received?

A. My most memorable achievement is getting to entertain people, tell stories, and hopefully impact them in a great way. My favorite thing is when people come up to me and tell me something positive about how a movie influenced them or made them happy or just say “right on, man.” That stuff is very fulfilling.

Q. Are you working on any projects or upcoming events?

A. I’m working on a few things

I can’t speak about, but I am getting ready to direct my first movie soon and that is going be a very exciting new chapter and endeavor.

Q. Where can the readers follow you?

A. I would love for everyone to follow me on Instagram @JoelMichaely4real.

I promise fun times!