In writer-director Mary Bronstein’s “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” out Oct. 10 from A24, Christian Slater is more heard than seen. His raspy voice — familiar from a host of memorable movies, from “Heathers” to “Blink Twice,” and a Golden Globe-winning role on “Mr. Robot” — is on the other end of the phone as Rose Byrne begins to depart from reality. Byrne plays a mother whose precarious housing situation and family health crisis push her to the edge; Slater is her husband, away on business and — upon his return — stunned to realize just how bad things have gotten.
Slater, who lives in New York, has lately had an increasingly busy and diverse career, including a run in an Off Broadway revival of Sam Shepard’s “Curse of the Starving Class” in the spring. He recently spoke to Variety on a walk through Central Park, near his home on the Upper West Side.
You’re the parent of young children — I imagine this script probably felt relatable to you.
From what I understand, it was a very personal story for Mary — and it did feel really relevant. I spent many months away from my kids originally. Last year I was in L.A. for many months — my wife gave birth on my first day of shooting, and I couldn’t be there.
So I can identify with the absent-husband factor. I’ll be at work and I’ll be talking to my wife: “I’m having a great time! It’s really going well!” All I’m trying to say is I’m getting along with everybody, and she hears, You’re having a great time, and I’m here.
Tell me about doing Sam Shepard, closer to home, earlier this year.
It was the dream scenario. I got to ride my bike to the theater! In the play, there’s supposed to be a little baby lamb; in the read-through, I imagined this baby lamb melting the hearts of the audience. But there are rules where you can’t work with baby animals anymore — so we were forced to work with a fully grown, grizzled old sheep.
That’s a challenge for an actor — trying to convince the audience that you’re dealing with a lovely little lamb all the same. Sheep go to the bathroom whenever they want, and would several times during the performance. We had to set aside the time to clean up. Instead of having the audience in the palm of my hand, they were rooting for me to pick up all the little pebbles.
It’s hard to believe “Mr. Robot” started a decade ago.
Working with Sam [Esmail] and working with Rami [Malek] — the relationships are what matter. Rami and I just went to the U.S. Open; Sam and I go to the movies all the time.
That show was also, unfortunately, very prescient about our hyperconnected world.
Now I have this device on my phone that cuts out all social media. I haven’t been on social media in a month and a half. I’ve never felt better. The influence on the brain of getting all those updates: It’s too much!
What’s the secret to career longevity?
Every situation is different — there are different personalities. I do my best, I show up, I don’t keep anybody waiting, and be as reliable as you can possibly be.
Was this always your approach? Or was it learned over time?
Learned over time. I started at 7. I did soap operas and Broadway, and I just loved it. One night, though, I was doing a play, a take on “The Christmas Carol” back in ’78. My father picked me up from home and was supposed to take me to the theater, but I had these tickets to the “Superman” premiere with Christopher Reeve. Here I am, 8 years old, and I had this decision to make — do I go to the movie, or do I go to my job? I made the choice to go see the movie, and the trouble that I was in after that decision … That was a big lesson! Always show up, no matter what.
Was this a complicated commitment to make as you went through your teens and 20s?
I was definitely a wilder person. I took chances and had to suffer for my art — I was very confused and very unhappy, boundaryless and trying to learn more about life, what works and what doesn’t.
I was in a position of great power before my hippocampus had really settled. My brain hadn’t really formed. There have been some wild adventures along the way, but for the last 20 years of my life, I’ve built a healthy reputation as a reliable person — and hopefully my wife would say, a reliable father and husband. And those are the only opinions that matter.