Matt Bomer: The Normal Heart Changed His Life - OUT.com

[Source]

Matt Bomer: The Normal Heart Changed His Life

4.21.2014
By Shana Naomi Krochmal

'It blew my mind in terms of the level of unconditional love between Ned and Felix—my goodness, if these people could incorporate this into their lives, under their circumstances, why can’t I?'

Photography by Kai Z Feng

Matt Bomer is the cover star of Out's June/July issue (available on newsstands May 15), and he spoke with writer Shana Naomi Krochmal about the experience of acting in the long-awaited adaptation of Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart  directed by Ryan Murphy for HBO. In the film, Matt Bomer plays Felix Turner, who falls victim to the disease as Ned Weeks (Mark Ruffalo) and Dr. Emma Brookner (Julia Roberts) raise hell from opposite ends to figure out what's happening. Here we have an exclusive image from Out's photo photo shoot with Kai Z Feng and a sneak peek at the interview.

+++

Bomer, whom Murphy had cast in guest roles on Glee (he played Darren Criss’s older brother) and The New Normal (as Andrew Rannells’s ostentatious ex-boyfriend), campaigned aggressively to play Felix. “Matt, out of everybody, fought the hardest for it,” Murphy tells Out. “It was that same passion that I had used to persuade Larry Kramer to give me the rights to the play.”

Murphy told Kramer they’d found their Felix. “I said, ‘I really believe in Matt Bomer.’ And Larry said, ‘But he’s so beautiful! Is he too beautiful?’ ”

Murphy arranged a meeting between the two men. “I was pretty starstruck,” Bomer says. “It was like meeting one of the Beatles. He was so central to my understanding and development. We talked for a really long time." Kramer emailed Murphy immediately after: “He’s the one.”

Because Bomer knew the part would require a production break during which he would have to lose a substantial amount of weight—40 pounds—part of his original lobbying effort for the role was extensive, specific research into how, in 1984, a man dying of AIDS would see his body change. His transformation— especially in contrast to Ned and Felix’s vigorous sex scenes earlier in the movie—is a painfully, hauntingly accurate time capsule.

“I think Matt felt the ghosts,” Murphy says. “I think he felt all the shame and humiliation and degradation of all those brothers who have died of AIDS. It was a very beautiful, spiritual thing to witness.”

Filming such demanding material over the course of five months employed Bomer’s years of classical training, and it took him back to that wide-eyed 14-year-old who first read The Normal Heart. “You’re really lucky as an artist if you get a role that changes you as a person,” Bomer, now 36, says earnestly, on the brink of tears. “It taught me how to access myself on a completely different level as an artist. And it blew my mind in terms of the level of unconditional love between Ned and Felix—my goodness, if these people could incorporate this into their lives, under their circumstances, why can’t I?”

The Normal Heart premieres on HBO May 25. Watch the latest trailer below:

The Hollywood Reporter - The Normal Heart video

[Source]

The Cast of 'The Normal Heart' on Bringing Gay Rights to the Big Screen

6:00 AM PDT 4/8/2014 by THR Staff

Matt Bomer, Mark Ruffalo, Jim Parsons and Taylor Kitsch share why they wanted to be part of Ryan Murphy's drama that took 30 years to make.

"One of my big hopes is that people whoi did not experience it directly will A have an understanding of what people went through at that time, but even more importantly, that fact that gay mens health crisis and ACT Up really catalyzed the gay rights movement," says Bomer. "We really stand on the shoulders of these people for the rights we have today."

Ryan Murphy to Helm HBO’s “Looking” - The Backlot

[Source]

Ryan Murphy to Helm HBO’s “Looking”

by Steven Frank | April 1, 2014

During a panel discussion following a press screening last night for HBO Films’ The Normal Heart, HBO President Len Amato (pictured left) announced that Ryan Murphy, the film’s director, would be taking over as showrunner for the HBO original series Looking in its second season.

“HBO had a great experience with Ryan on Heart,” Amato said. “We’re really thrilled about continuing that partnership and seeing what his unique vision will bring to Looking.”

Looking, which follows three gay men in present-day San Francisco, received mostly positive critical reviews but failed to pick up the kind of watercooler buzz surrounding HBO’s more popular series. Industry insiders view the decision to bring Murphy on board as a clear-cut strategy to bring in a wider audience.

During the panel discussion, Murphy elaborated on the exact changes he plans to make in Looking’s second season. “The biggest change — and the one I’m most excited about — is moving the show to Los Angeles,” he said, adding, “No offense to San Francisco, but L.A. is just so much more exciting and glamorous. And it will enable us to have all these amazing celebrity cameos!”

Murphy elaborated that he’d already lined up Gwyneth Paltrow, Zachary Quinto, and NeNe Leakes for recurring roles.
To facilitate the move to Los Angeles, Murphy explained that Season Two will find Patrick (Jonathan Groff) inheriting a karaoke bar in the Valley, and deciding to move to Los Angeles to run it with help from his friends Agustin (Frankie J. Alvarez) and Dom (Murray Bartlett).

Murphy (l) with Looking star Jonathan Groff

“I’d worked with Jonathan on Glee,” Murphy said, “and he’s got this incredible instrument … But honestly, they were just wasting his talents on the first season of Looking.” Murphy elaborated that the karaoke setting would afford Groff’s character continuous opportunities to sing, kicking off with a soulful acoustic version of “Let It Go” in the Season Two premiere.

Additionally, Murphy plans on tinkering with the look and design of the show, starting with mandatory close shaves and waxing for the main characters. “I just never got the whole facial hair thing,” he said. “Blech, who wants to see that?”

Less this…

He’s also enlisting Glee costumer designer Elizabeth Martucci to “brighten” things up. “I want to see those guys in Technicolor blazers and shorts and bowties and porkpie hats,” Murphy said.

More this…

Speaking of Glee, Murphy said that he’s looking forward to potential Glee crossover episodes. One idea is to have Blaine (Darren Criss) and Kurt (Chris Colfer) coming to L.A. to find a surrogate mother for their baby, perhaps to be played by American Horror Story alumna Emma Roberts. “I’m thinking the guys could stumble into Groff’s bar and all sing an a cappella version of ‘Baby It’s You.’ Or maybe ‘Wanted Dead or Alive,’ we’ll figure that out later,” he said.

Asked about other potential storylines for Looking, Murphy said some ideas include Agustin accidentally undergoing gay conversion therapy and starting to date women, and Dom entering a monastery being menaced by a demented monsignor secretly turning the monks into freakish alien hybrids.

When asked if Murphy is worried about alienating the show’s existing fans, Murphy reassured, “These are just some minor cosmetic changes … I promise it’s going to be the same show everyone knows and loves. Just completely different.”

In other news, Murphy announced he’s planning a reboot of The New Normal, this time with a straight couple.

Also, happy April Fool’s Day.