Leslie Bibb Interviews Iron Man
Blonde, hot actress Leslie Bibb was hilarious as Will Ferrell's gold digging Southern wife Carley Bobby, in Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. A few years ago, she garnered legions of fans with her role on the high school TV series "Popular" and has been in "ER", "Line of Fire", "Nip/Tuck" and "Crossing Jordan".
Leslie plays a feisty investigative reporter vowing to bring down playboy weapons manufacturer/genius Tony Stark in the new action thriller Iron Man. We wanted to know all about her character, acting opposite volatile and talented actor Robert Downey Junior, why smart gals often go for bad boys and what super heroine the actress would love to play. Leslie lives near me in Los Angeles but was phoning us from New York where she's doing press for Iron Man. Hey, it's 7:15 in the morning our time. We're a bit groggy. Phone rings....
Leslie: Hi. You are up early! If it's any consolation, I went to bed last night at 1:30 and got up at 7:30. But hey, I'm in a hotel suite getting my hair and make-up done and talking to people about a big ole movie called Iron Man. [we laugh]
TeenHollywood: You are so feisty in the morning.
Leslie: I'm always feisty. Are you kidding me? I'm ridiculous but I feel really passionate about this movie. What's really fun about it is it's an action movie but there's a story. I think the sun shines out of Robert Downey Junior's [butt]. I really do! You can't get me to say anything bad about him. I'm obsessed with him. I adore him. I squeal like a school girl around him.
TeenHollywood: So, I gather that your scenes together were fun then?
Leslie: Amazing. And I think, when you see it, there is just a natural chemistry that we have. I'm sort of geeky and he's sort of fun so I trust him as an actor and he was very kind to me and sweet. I loved him as an actor but now I adore him as a human being too. He's the real deal.
TeenHollywood: Can you tell us about your reporter character Christine Everhart?
Leslie: Christine is a Vanity Fair reporter and she is very black and white. It's good or evil, right or wrong. No shades of gray. That's how she starts off. It's not that she can't stand Tony Stark. She didn't grow up with a lot of money, went to Brown on a scholarship, pretty girl, smart as a whip, paid her way through school, works her hump off, wants to make a difference and this guy is rich, doesn't have to do anything, drinks too much, womanizes, thinks he can get anything he wants and he's not accountable.
TeenHollywood: And he sells weapons!
Leslie: She's like, 'you sell weapons. Some would call that war profiteering'. He's like 'we help people. We free people'. 'You free people but you also kill them at the same time'. It's very timely. She becomes the conscience of the piece. In a way, when you see her character, something important is going to come out of her mouth. 'Hey buddy, be accountable. Here's the mirror, look into it'. She's well-meaning but there's an inherent darkness to her and she sleeps with Tony Stark! She can't help it, hates herself for doing it, hates him but still wants a scoop.
TeenHollywood: Does she meet her rival Pepper Potts?[Gwyneth Paltrow's character]
Leslie: Yeah. The next morning when she meets her, it's a really fun scene between the two of them; a stand off. She's always ready and can slip into 'what do I need to get the story?' She slept with Tony to get the story. They have a strong chemistry. I think it was a moment of weakness but she starts snooping around in his house. [Their relationship] is like being in the school yard and the little boy pushes you down and tries to kiss you. But, she also stands up to him to say 'be accountable'. There's something that ties them together and also repels them.
TeenHollywood: How did you find out that you'd landed a role in this big movie?
Leslie: I went and auditioned and I thought I'd have to come back and read with Robert but I got a call while I was driving home and they're like 'no. They just want to offer it to you'. Fantastic!
TeenHollywood: Marvel has said that there are a lot of female fans of the Iron Man comics. Why do you think that is?
Leslie: They love a bad boy! Tony Stark is flawed. He's a womanizer. It's the same reason a girl will go out with George Clooney even though they know he's never gonna marry her. 'I don't care'. We're fools. We love it. We're gonna be the one to change him.
TeenHollywood: How true it is! Were you familiar with the Iron Man comics at all?
Leslie: No. I walked into a comic book store. It's the first one I'd ever been in. I grew up in a little country town. There were no comic book stores. I walked in on the day Captain America had died and the store was teaming with testosterone. I was 'Hi. I'm in this movie called Iron Man', and the excitement in this guy's eyes and all the people there [was amazing]. I was like 'okay, this movie's gonna be pretty cool'.
TeenHollywood: Was the experience of doing Iron Man different for you from the beginning?
Leslie: Well, I got to the set and said, 'whoa, that's a pretty sick craft services [food] table' and then, yesterday when I walked into this hotel room there was a mantle full of Iron Man toys!! What? Wow this movie is different! One day, I'll be a superhero toy.
TeenHollywood: Do you have a superhero favorite?
Leslie: I am a huge fan of Batman. But, really, I kind of love villains so Catwoman? Obsessed. I love her. Have you seen the "Heavy Metal" comics? The girls have big boobs and hour-glass figures but they're really strong women. They can kick your butt but there's humor to them. I might want to play one of those but I don't have the right cup size! Their costumes are ridiculous.
TeenHollywood: Speaking of costumes, you went to an all-girls high school? How did wearing uniforms and all that work for you?
Leslie: I grew up in the city of Richmond, Virginia and the public schools weren't great. It was a better school so it was kind of out of necessity. At first I was like 'Ugh, an all-girls, Catholic high school with uniforms?' But, I loved it. I'd get out of bed and never worried about what I had on. I didn't care. I think what starts to happen is, 'oh, is that guy gonna think I'm too smart? Or nerdy? It's very competitive to be the smartest and I think, for young ladies, that's what you should be competitive about, not about who has the coolest handbag and the coolest clothes.
TeenHollywood: Yeah, more girls need to get that message.
Leslie: I've been living on the Upper West Side in New York and I see a lot of that; being famous for famous sake. You see people going 'Oh, I want to be like her' and you're like 'really? Don't you want to be a smart girl'? I think it's unfortunate. I'm so grateful because I got a great education and worked really hard.
TeenHollywood: A lot of girls would say, what about my social life? There won't be any boys.
Leslie: Trust me, if you're a teenager, you'll always find boys. Hey teenaged boys aren't that great. Boys and girls mature differently. I think I'll just focus on my studies. I think what will serve you best in life is not the greatest outfit but the greatest mind and greatest heart.
TeenHollywood: Good point! So, is it true that your sister met someone on Match.com and got married? Can that work for high profile actors? Wouldn't you get fanboys wanting to take you out?
Leslie: Yeah. My sister met someone, fell in love and got married. They are so cute they should do a commercial. But, I don't know. I'm dating someone right now but I don't know if I would do the internet thing. It's not my personal bag. I can barely turn on my computer. You don't really want me on there.
TeenHollywood: What's next for you?
Leslie: I'm co-producing this movie called Miss Nobody and it's a black comedy. It's about the extent she goes to to climb the corporate ladder, even if that means killing a couple of people. She's a wallflower, so meek and it was really fun to play her.
TeenHollywood: And who do you play in Confessions of a Shopaholic?
Leslie: I play Isla Fisher's nemesis so I get to be a lovely little villain with her. Love Isla. It's a great cast. Kristin Scott-Thomas plays my boss in it. I got to live in New York and my boyfriend lives in New York. I love to go set up shop in another city for a while. I miss my girlfriends at home so it's hard though. Hey, I love my little house in L.A. and my dogs. My friends are such solid people.
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Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.
