Kathleen Turner

Interview, August, 1995 by Graham Fuller

GF: Do you get angry about the way women are depicted in movies today?

KT: I often find it disgusting. What was that film a year or two ago where the woman was bought for a million dollars?

GF: Indecent Proposal.

KT: They sent me that, and I threw it in their faces. I can't believe any woman would touch that role. Ugh! It makes me angry. Even Thelma & Louise - and I love Susan Sarandon - was originally meant for men. But they changed the characters to women to give it some sensationalism, and then they drove them over a Goddamn cliff. It's stupid; it's not about women's issues at all.

GF: Were you ever an ideological feminist?

KT: No. I'm very practical. What I'm reaching for is individualism for women - not the antimale Establishment kind of feminism.

GF: What else has made you angry lately?

KT: Dammit, I am angry! [laughs] When Serial Mom came out, someone said, "Turner is at her most glorious in her rage." Hell, they found me out. What makes me angry? The education of children. How in God's name can you expect to have a functioning society the way we teach our kids? I'm very old-fashioned in some ways because of my father, who thought that being a public servant was an honor. Everyone must find a capacity in which they can serve, because we all benefit from society. You shouldn't get to live in society and give nothing back. People complain about their taxes and lack of this or lack of that, and yet they do nothing for the community. That makes me furious.

GF: You've taken many risks in your career, but I wonder if you feel there's a limitation on how many you can take.

KT: Don't know. Crimes of Passion, which is one of the best films I've done, will live strongly in my resume, even though it didn't do well. If my ego was out of whack and I believed that I could carry anything off, that would be a stupid risk. But so far there's been no reason not to try anything.

GF: Are there any areas in which you're not fulfilled?

KT: At the moment, I'm balanced. I'm happy in this play. My husband, Jay, has got his band, the Suits, and they have a new album out. My daughter is wonderful - she's a pistol and a half. Who knows what's next? Yes, I'm feeling quite fulfilled. I think my mission is to become the greatest human I can. I know that sounds pompous, but what else do we have? I don't believe in simply accumulating money, but then I have the luxury to say that, because I have enough for all my needs. I have health. I have a wonderful support system. I have the admiration of millions of strangers, which I do not underestimate.

GF: Is that important to you?

KT: Yes. I want people to like me. They don't have to always like my characters, you understand.

GF: So I've got to ask you - what is Matty Walker, your character in Body Heat, thinking when she's lying on the beach at the end?

KT: I think she realizes she gained the fortune and lost her life. She realizes she's really fucked up.

GF: You think she loved Ned Racine [William Hurt], the guy she duped?

KT: Yeah, but love isn't everything - certainly not for her.