Brian Damage
02-13-2010, 05:39 PM
But his next project as writer and director will be a biopic of the dwarf actor Hervé Villechaize, who shot himself in 1993.
Gervasi's personal connection to the story dates back to his time as a journalist. “I loved him because he played Nick Nack in The Man With the Golden Gun, then Tattoo in Fantasy Island,” he says. “He was this iconic figure and I secured an interview with him. He pulled a knife on me when I finished my questions, saying I'm not done yet'.
“So I ended up spending four, five days with him, and him spilling his whole life story to me. Six days after I flew back to London he committed suicide. I was his suicide note. What I thought was going to be a great dinner-party story turned out to be one of the most profound experiences of my life. One of the first scripts I wrote was based on my meeting with Villechaize. I think that was the script Spielberg read, that convinced him to hire me. So you see, these stories are all connected.” Of course. They're not about headbangers or suicidal small actors. They're about people.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/film/article-23805421-anvil-is-the-headbangers-fairytale.do
Gervasi's personal connection to the story dates back to his time as a journalist. “I loved him because he played Nick Nack in The Man With the Golden Gun, then Tattoo in Fantasy Island,” he says. “He was this iconic figure and I secured an interview with him. He pulled a knife on me when I finished my questions, saying I'm not done yet'.
“So I ended up spending four, five days with him, and him spilling his whole life story to me. Six days after I flew back to London he committed suicide. I was his suicide note. What I thought was going to be a great dinner-party story turned out to be one of the most profound experiences of my life. One of the first scripts I wrote was based on my meeting with Villechaize. I think that was the script Spielberg read, that convinced him to hire me. So you see, these stories are all connected.” Of course. They're not about headbangers or suicidal small actors. They're about people.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/film/article-23805421-anvil-is-the-headbangers-fairytale.do