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Jim Carrey at the premiere of "Horton Hears A Who" held at the Mann Village Theater in Westwood, Calif. on March 8, 2008.
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The evocative and whimsical books of Dr. Seuss, born Theodor Seuss Geisel, have delighted generations of young people. Now, over 50 years since Horton Hears a Who! was first published, and with the help of 20th Century Fox and some spectacular voice talent (including Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett, Will Arnett, Isla Fisher, Amy Poehler, Jaime Pressly, Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill), it has reached the big screen and, for the first time, a motion picture transports audiences into Dr. Seuss’ incredible imagination, through state-of-the-art CG animation.
The film, like Seuss’ book, presents an imaginative elephant named Horton (Carrey), who hears a fait cry for help coming from a tiny speck of dust floating through the air. Although Horton doesn’t know it yet, that speck houses an entire city named Who-ville, inhabited by the microscopic Whos, led by their Mayor (Carell). Despite being ridiculed and threatened by his jungle neighbors, who think he has lost his mind, Horton is determined to save the particle because, after all, “a person’s a person, no matter how small.”
Jim Carrey and Steve Carell both spoke with MediaBlvd Magazine about what an honor it was to be involved with telling such an iconic story.
MediaBlvd Magazine> The Dr. Seuss books are in the young reader section of the bookstore and library, but Dr. Seuss also transcends age. What do you think it is about Horton that transcends for young people?
Steve Carell> As a 5- or 6-year-old, I don’t think we think about how things transcend anything. You just think about how it resonates, however much anything resonates in a 5- or 6-year-old. This is a book that I think resonates with kids. They don’t understand the metaphors or the richness to it, but it still resonates. There is something very specific about the theme that even a little kid can understand, that everyone deserves an equal footing in life. That’s just a very basic tenant of being a creature of the world.
Jim Carrey> As far as kids go, the thing that attracts them to this is not the deeper concepts involved. It’s really just the fact that Dr. Seuss’ creativity was so incredible. He was such an original. If you give a kid a character that he’s never seen before, in a world that he’s never seen before, they will completely lose themselves in an imaginary space. At the same time, they are getting all of those wonderful lessons. In my own personal experience, I’ve always been drawn to things that are different. I felt odd, as a child, so when I came across anything odd, I went, “Oh, those are my people. I dig those people.” There is something very original about the whole thing, and that’s what draws kids. Myself, I listened to the stories on tape so I didn’t really see the pictures.
MediaBlvd> Jim, what made you odd, when you were a kid?
Jim> I was the baby of the family. I guess my father was strange. He was funny and strange, and I looked at him and went “Wow, everybody is looking, and laughing, at my dad.” And, I just immediately wanted to be that, so I locked myself in my room. When all the other kids were outside playing, I was devising ways to make myself appear to be different somehow.
MediaBlvd> In the past, you have turned down animated films, where the schedule might have conflicted with your other roles. How did this one work out?
Jim> What they do is they come to your house and say, “This is going to be the simplest process in the world.” They completely lie to you. Anybody who they do that to in the future, might want to take note. It is hard work. It’s not as simple as they make it sound. It is a half a day here and there, whenever you get a free moment to do it. The fact is that they come to you and they really don’t have a script. They have an overall idea of where they want to go, but they say, “Here’s eight pages. What do you think we should do with it?” So, you sit in a room and just come up with ideas and lines. It’s an amazing process. You think, “How is this ever going to get to the end and make sense?”
Steve> You don’t know how anything you do will sync up with what anyone else is doing. It’s all based on how the director sees it and cues it. He’s the one threading all of these performances together. You give him a thousand different variations on a scene, and then he tracks it with the rest of the performances. I think it’s a huge leap of faith. You can do things and think, “Will that even work?,” and in terms of what the director is hearing, and then you can hope it turns out good.
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Steve Carell at the premiere of "Horton Hears A Who" held at the Mann Village Theater in Westwood, Calif. on March 8, 2008.
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MediaBlvd> How limiting is it to only act with your voice?
Steve> There is freedom within the limitations. When you are given a structure, and you can do anything within that structure, there is something freeing to that, as opposed to “You can do anything, anytime, anywhere.” In those situations, sometimes you just don’t know where to focus, at least for me. Really, the animators do the heavy lifting. We provide as much as we can, vocally, but then you see it and you see where they have taken whatever you have done. It’s remarkable.
Jim> That is the great thing about this. You are surrounded by artists who are just as creative, or more so, than you are, and I love being handled by nerds. Just to spew something out and have somebody put wings on it, is fantastic, and a wonderful thing.
MediaBlvd> Did the two of you actually get to work together on this?
Steve> I’m in awe, honestly. I am still pinching myself, honestly, to be working with Jim Carrey. It’s a big honor for me.
MediaBlvd> Has there ever been a time in your life where you actually felt like a spec?
Jim> I know I’m a spec, absolutely. That’s honestly how I feel, even though I’m an interesting spec. I’ve always thought in those terms. How can you look at the sky at night and not feel like you are a spec somewhere? I saw a picture on the Discovery Channel, one time, of the
Earth from Mars perspective, and you can hardly find it. It was a spec. We truly are a spec. So, there are all different levels of that. It’s really true.
Steve> If I think about it too much, my mind will explode. We are all so tiny, in the big picture. In the really big picture we are infinitesimal.
Jim> I have always felt that there were worlds, within worlds, within worlds. Somewhere on my right arm, inside of a cell, there is some kind of world happening. There are people sitting there going, “Oh, I hope we don’t destroy ourselves.” We could swing that arm and hit it against a tree, and then that whole world would be gone
Steve> That’s why I’m paralyzed. After doing this movie, I can hardly move. Essentially, I’m afraid I will be crushing tiny universes, wherever I go. Even in your laughter, the saliva is coming out of your mouth and you are killing worlds.
MediaBlvd> Jim, how did you prepare to become an elephant, and Steve, how did you prepare to become a Who?
Jim> I thought of peanuts on my breath. I figured Horton have the sweet smell of peanuts on his breath, all the time. I wanted to be the type of elephant that didn’t realize he was enormous and bulky. He was light as a feather, as he puts it. He was a dancer. He was not bigger than anybody else. That is where I wanted to come from with that character. Maybe it’s an inferiority complex, but he doesn’t feel like he’s bigger. He could do a lot of damage if he wanted to, but he doesn’t feel like he has that power. He feels equal to everybody.
Steve> Imagine a world where nothing goes wrong, ever. Everything is always happy, everyone always gets along, and everything is always good. The sun is always shining. Then, imagine that something goes wrong. How would you react to that? That’s what being a Who is like, especially in this story. It’s a perfect world, and nothing ever goes wrong, and then it’s suddenly turned upside down.
MediaBlvd> The motto of this film is that “A person’s a person, no matter how small.” Do either of you have a motto that you refer to, nowadays?
Jim> Always turn your wheel in the direction of a skid. That has been my motto all along. That’s really what I do.
Steve> Be sure to use a washcloth because that is a good way to exfoliate.
MediaBlvd> Have you had a chance to talk to Audrey Geisel about what she thinks of the film?
Jim> Every once in a while, I say, “Hi,” but we don’t talk a lot. I was honored that, when they brought it to her, the first thing out of her mouth was, “Can you get Jim Carrey?” I feel really honored that she wants me to be a part of a legacy. I just feel wonderful that two of these projects
have come my way. I’m such a fan of Dr. Seuss, so it’s a great thing.
Steve> I’ve never spoken to her.
MediaBlvd> Are there any Dr. Seuss stories that you haven’t had the chance to do yet, that you would like to do?
Steve> I don’t know. I would love to do Green Eggs and Ham. I think I could do a lot with it. It does sound ridiculous to even talk about it, but Horton Hears a Who sounded odd. And then, you see it and say, “Of course, it completely making sense.” Maybe Green Eggs and Ham is a blockbuster of the future. You never know.
MediaBlvd> Do either of you ever pinch yourself and wonder why it is that you have become a comic legend?
Steve> In terms of pinching myself about success, I do that all day, everyday. Frankly, I owe a lot to Jim, for any of my success, because essentially the first movie I was ever in was Bruce Almighty. I never got auditions for movies, and that was one of the first I had ever gotten.
Jim> And, he stole the whole fucking movie.
Steve> I remember watching Liar, Liar and thinking, “That looks like the most fun you could possibly have. That just looks like a party.” In my wildest dreams, I didn’t think I would ever be
able to be a part of that. Then, a couple of years later, I was. So, I’m still pinching myself.
Jim> He did an amazing job. He’s done that ever since. It’s incredible to watch him. For me, it’s hard to have a perspective on it, from inside myself. I just feel like I could be working at a factory again in a month, loading trucks, where I started out. I don’t have a perspective on it. It’s just one thing to the next. I don’t really think about being iconic. I just try to do work and have fun doing it, and hopefully that translates. I do watch other people, like Steve, and I can sit back and go “Wow, man, that guy is good.” I’m much more impressed with other people. We have an amazing cast in this. The people that this project gathered is incredible. It’s like a who’s who of comedy, across five generations. It’s really exciting. Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill and Carol Burnett amaze me. I sit and watch Knocked Up and go, “Wow, that is great work, man. These guys are doing incredible stuff. I wish I could be them.” It’s all your perspective. It just feels good to be in it.
 MediaBlvd> Steve, are you going to go back and work on The Office, or are you done for the season?
Steve> We went back to work. The first episode involves a dinner party that Michael throws. I think it may be the funniest episode of the season, so far. Everything before the strike was great. In terms of Michael and Jan, I would say the storm cloud is moving.
MediaBlvd> How was it, being an action star for Get Smart?
Steve> It’s incredibly fun. Being an action star is all I ever hoped it to be. I, ultimately, knew I would be an action star. It was ridiculous. I’m hanging from wires, off of buildings, underneath planes. It was fun. I would do it again in a second.
MediaBlvd> Jim, what is it like, playing Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, out in 2009?
Jim> Ebenezer is such a great thing for me because I get to play all kinds of different roles in the film. First of all, the process is so fascinating. You are literally in an empty warehouse with cameras around you. You might have a frame of a fireplace, or something like that, and
then you rehearse. Then they say, “Can we take this away?,” and you are just sitting on a chair. You have to create the entire world in your head. Not only that, but you are working with other actors and you are in this ridiculous cap suit with balls all over it, and a hat with pinchers that comes down with cameras in your face. The real work of it is transcending the lack of stimuli. You have to create the reality of the piece. Also, it is very much a classic version of A Christmas Carol, so I’m playing Ebenezer Scrooge, at four different ages. There are a lot of vocal and physical things that I have to do, not to mention doing the English and Irish accents properly. I’m also playing the past, present and future ghosts. There is a lot of really wonderful work in it, and it’s such a challenge. I want it to fly in the
UK. I want it to be good, and I want them to say, “Yeah, that’s for real.” We are very true to the book. It’s beautiful. It’s an incredible film. If you are lucky at some point in your life to have that Christmas Carol moment, then you’ll understand. I’ve certainly had that moment. Things were going south, and I had the opportunity to see how horrible things could have gotten without them actually going there. I won’t get into specifics, but I had my ghost of Christmas future, at a certain point in my life. I went, “Oh, wow, okay, I have to really start caring about the right things here.” It’s just a fantastic story. It’s beautiful literature.
MediaBlvd> What will you be working on after that?
Jim> After A Christmas Carol, I’m doing a film, called I Love You Phillip Morris, about a gentleman who fell in love with his cell mate, and escaped from prison four times to try and find ways to get his lover out prison.
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