Escapism artist

KURT RUSSELL, the leading man in films as varied as “Escape From New York,” “Silkwood” and “Dreamer,” was in Austin last week for the Texas premiere of “Grindhouse.” The 56-year-old stars in Quentin Tarantino’s slasher half of the double feature, whose zombie half is directed by Robert Rodriguez.

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You’re getting ready for a premiere right now. What designer gown are you wearing?

I’m just getting ready to go! As is often so, something Western. Uh, designer boots? Should be a lot of fun here -- it’s a hometown for Robert Rodriguez.

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You’ve been doing huge amounts of press out in junket-land. How are they treating you?

Great! They get it. Which is nice to see. I think because it’s Quentin, they understand to look. They understand they’re seeing an incredibly detailed love letter. To me, watching them is understanding that we’re getting from Quentin and Robert the other side of “Cinema Paradiso.” It’s made with that same kind of love and care. To have been a part of, in a weird way, the process of their love affair with movies, going back to the things I did, especially with John Carpenter, was a special feeling.

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Did you happen to read the recent memoir by Adrienne Barbeau, John Carpenter’s ex-wife? She talked a lot about life among the B movies.

No! I’ve had a career of making all kinds of movies. For us, the process is always the same: You create something that you think an audience is going to have a great time with. I had a conversation with George Lucas once, and he said, I don’t think I trust anybody over 14. They become not jaded but contaminated. They begin to have an opinion. I’m paraphrasing. But I had conversations with Walt Disney a thousand years earlier in the same vein. I’m of that belief too.

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We forget that these films were also shocking -- brutality and blood, and on a good budget. It was an innovation.

When we were doing “Escape From New York,” “The Thing,” “Big Trouble in Little China,” “Used Cars,” you know, to me there was an audience out there that would get a kick out of the style and feeling that you had at the show. And through the years these pictures have gained weight. These audiences have grown because of DVDs and tapes and stuff -- and had the life they were supposed to have had. I’m happy for that.

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With “Poseidon,” you lapped two generations of movie-goers. But the original wasn’t inflected with irony. That relates to what “Grindhouse” is up to -- to plow straight through the irony that deadens violence and horror and come out the other side.

When you do that, it’s gonna be compared. They’re talking about remaking “Escape From New York” -- great, go ahead. But now that’s gonna be compared to John Carpenter’s “Escape.” And the actor’s gonna be compared to the guy who created the role. I’ve been through that a number of times.

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Touching “Escape From New York” is crazy.

John and I were not interested in building a franchise. He wrote a character that I realized. That was a strong sharing process that was a blast. A lot of young filmmakers saw that, and that turned them on. I’m an actor! “Poseidon,” it’s not my decision. It’s not something I would have thought of to do. But Wolfgang Petersen had his desire. So, great. He did “Das Boot”! So maybe these fellows who’ll do “Escape,” they’ve got their reasons.

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You’ve referred to your politics a bit making you an outcast from Hollywood. How crazy could your politics possibly be?

Aww, I think that was something I said years ago. That started to change about 10 years ago. Writers stopped trying to turn me into a strange wooden Republican along the lines of what they were doing to Charlton Heston, whether he deserves it or not. There were things, instances where guys would call me up and say, “This director was afraid of working with you because of your politics!”

But I’ve always kept them to myself. I’ve never done any candidate-supporting stuff. I can’t stand that. Now, I can go to a party and not feel so horribly outcast. I don’t say that lightly. Many times at parties, it was just a long, long uncomfortable night and I didn’t want to be there. But not so much now. I never cared to go to the party anyway!