Michael Caine: "There were no intimacy coordinators in my day, thank God"

“Fortunately, at 90, I no longer play lovers,” continues the actor about the evolution of the film industry. (…) It’s hard, but I’m learning thanks to friends younger than me.”

Michael Caine recently explained that the historical film The Great Escaper would certainly be his last film role. At 90 years old, the actor announces his retirement At Daily Mail, and in the company of his acting partner John Standing, a year his junior, he reacts to the evolution of the acting profession over the decades. And more generally to that of the cinema industry, and of society.

Learning about the existence of “intimacy coordinators”employed on the sets of films and series to supervise sex scenes, so that the actors are as comfortable as possible, here is his reaction: “Really? Is it serious? And what do they do? There weren’t any in my day. Thank God I’m 90 and I don’t play lovers anymore, that’s all I can tell you. In my time, you shot the love scenes and got away with it without anyone interfering. Everything has changed.”

The discussion then shifts to political correctness and #MeTooand Michael Caine says he listens to the advice of his children and grandchildren, to “do his best.” “It sucks not being able to say what’s on your mind, not being able to call anyone ‘honey,’ he adds. It’s hard, but I learn from friends younger than me. (…) When you get older, you inevitably think about death. But once you have grandchildren, your focus changes. You think of them. You want to keep living, because they are so much a part of you. You would like to live forever to see how they evolve. You just want to keep going.”

During the discussion, Michael Caine also assures that he never dreamed of becoming famous. “Today, that’s what counts: becoming famous. But for us, it was work above all. This job changed our lives.” He then says he was first rejected for Zulu (released in 1964), because he had auditioned for a role that had just been cast. The director apologized, before offering him another character, and this film finally launched his career.

“When I started, I never thought about competition with other actors, he explains. All I cared about was being as good as I could be. I didn’t care about the competition, because I knew that there would always be actors better than me, and others less good. I didn’t pay attention to it, I just moved on.”

The Great Escaper will mark the final film appearance of Glenda Jackson, a popular British actress who died last June at age 87. “It was strange to play alongside her again after almost 50 years, not knowing that she was unwell, regrets Michael Caine. We played husband and wife. I was completely stunned when she died, ten days after attending a private screening of the film.”

“She was a hard worker, he adds. She didn’t seem sick or anything. We had already played together in A Romantic Englishwoman, it was in 1975. We were so young at the time, and she was a magnificent young woman.”

The Great Escaper does not yet have a French release date, but here is its trailer broadcast in Great Britain: