Diane Kruger Interview, National Treasure Book of Secrets

MoviesOnline sat down with Diane Kruger at the Los Angeles press day for her new movie, “National Treasure: Book of Secrets,” which opens in theaters this weekend. In this follow up to the box-office hit "National Treasure," treasure hunter Ben Gates (Nicolas Cage) once again sets out on an exhilarating, action-packed new global quest to unearth hidden history and treasures. Kruger plays the beautiful, scholarly Abigail Chase, who shares Ben’s passion for history.

When a missing page from the diary of John Wilkes Booth surfaces, Ben's great-great grandfather is suddenly implicated as a key conspirator in Abraham Lincoln's death. Determined to prove his ancestor's innocence, Ben follows an international chain of clues that takes him on a chase from Paris to London and ultimately back to America. This journey leads Ben and his crew not only to surprising revelations – but to the trail of the world's most treasured secrets.

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Jon Turteltaub and directed by Turteltaub, the story reunites the original cast including Cage, Kruger, Justin Bartha and Academy Award winner Jon Voight, joined this time by four-time Academy Award nominee Ed Harris, Academy Award nominee Harvey Keitel, and 2006 Academy Award winner Helen Mirren.

“I think the first film was successful because it took history that everyone has heard of, and put it in a brand new light of adventure and treasure hunting,” says the German-born Kruger. It was a surprise to me how successful ‘National Treasure’ was in Europe and the rest of the world because of its American theme, but I guess treasure hunting goes a long way. I was excited by the idea that the second film opened up to locations in London and Paris, because everyone in the world can feel even more involved in the story.”

“At the end of the first film, we left Ben and Abigail off falling in love and becoming a couple, and this one starts with them breaking up,” continues Kruger. Abigail is a curator, so she considers facts to be more important than assumptions, and I think that’s one of the issues she has with Ben. She’s more rational and realistic, and a little reluctant to give in and go on a new treasure hunt.”

In 2004, Diane Kruger became an international sensation with her roles as Helen of Troy alongside Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom and Eric Bana in Wolfgang Petersen’s historical epic “Troy,” and as beautiful and brainy Abigail Chase opposite Nicolas Cage in “National Treasure.” Kruger has also starred in such international productions as “Joyeux Noel (Merry Christmas),” “Frankie,” “Copying Beethoven,” “Les Brigades du Tigre,” “Goodbye Bafana” and “Spring Break in Bosnia.”

Sporting a classic dress by Oscar de la Renta, here’s what she had to tell us about her latest movie:

MoviesOnline: Was it hard to get back into the swing of the character?

DIANE KRUGER: No. It was just like that (snaps fingers). Because we all stayed in touch over the two years, three years it’s been. Both Nick, myself, and Jon were a little cautious about do we really want to make a sequel. We never anticipated when we shot the first one that we were going to make a sequel. So that’s a weird thing for an actor. You go “I don’t know.” And then they showed us a synopsis of this one, the plot, and it sounded really interesting, the Lincoln assassination and the whole thing. So we cautiously signed on with the right to pull out if the script didn’t turn out so well. I have to say I loved the script. I really like where they took my character in comparison to the first film.

MoviesOnline: Your character had quite an arc.

DIANE KRUGER: Yeah. She is separated. She’s more fun. She’s lighter and more sure of herself. She is so smart and so strong. I would like to be a little bit more like her.

MoviesOnline: How much of the Buckingham Palace argument was improvised?

DIANE KRUGER: Quite a bit. Everything up to the arrest was scripted. And then everything else is just like going off. I watched with my boyfriend, when we were watching it he leaned over and said “I can’t not believe you used that in the movie.”
(Laughter)
Every boyfriend or husband goes “Ah. No!” (Laughter)

MoviesOnline: What is your equivalent of “So....”?

DIANE KRUGER: Not so much the so, but that line “Just because you may know what my answer is going to be, you still have to ask me.” That thing is definitely part of my life.

MoviesOnline: Can you talk about working with Nicolas Cage? Is there a lot of energy?

DIANE KRUGER: Yes, he’s wild. You never know what you’re going to get. Every day is different. You come to the set and you don’t know what mood he’s going to be in. And his mind goes four times faster than mine in any direction. He picks you up and takes you on this wave kind of thing.

MoviesOnline: How about the physical challenges, especially working on the balance platform in that underground chamber? Was there anything that was hard to handle or was it just fun?

DIANE KRUGER: The balancing thing was OK. It was the water that really got to us, I think. It sounds silly but you are in water for three weeks, every day. You are fighting water currents, waterfalls. It is loud. You have to scream your dialogue. You’re in a confined space with 60 people. It’s like gross water. Ugh!
(Laughter).
It gets old real fast.

MoviesOnline: Where was that scene shot?

DIANE KRUGER: It was at Universal.

MoviesOnline: It was three weeks you said?

DIANE KRUGER: About. We had about a week on the big waterfall set. And then 2 1/2 weeks in the drowning room, that last room, and then a couple more just going down into the City of Gold and water and stuff.

MoviesOnline: Where was the Library of Congress interior shot?

DIANE KRUGER: Washington. That is actually the Library of Congress.

MoviesOnline: You are kidding.

DIANE KRUGER: No. Seriously.

MoviesOnline: In the production notes, it says the Lincoln Memorial was going to be in the movie and it is not.

DIANE KRUGER: Yeah. They cut it out.

MoviesOnline: Why did they cut it out?

DIANE KRUGER: (Long pause) (Laughter) You’ll have to ask Jerry or Jon. I don’t know.

MoviesOnline: You were saying all the water was a hard shoot, but do you like the way the scene turned out?

DIANE KRUGER: Yeah, it looks pretty good. But it looks like it was effortless, they cut it down a lot, so it feels like it is nothing. But I go “Oh, I remember that day.” (Laughter).

MoviesOnline: What was the most fun scene you shot?

DIANE KRUGER: The Oval Office. Those were really fun because Ty (Burrell), the actor who plays Connor, was so funny. He’s just so easy going. To me, that was the first time someone allowed me to be comedic and play dumb. It was just so fun. It was really cool.

MoviesOnline: What about the scenes inside Buckingham Palace? Were those on the Universal lot?

DIANE KRUGER: No. They were in London at Lancaster House.

MoviesOnline: Did Nick drive the car during part of that long chase? Was he actually behind the wheel?

DIANE KRUGER: Yeah.

MoviesOnline: So was he scary? Was it fun?

DIANE KRUGER: It was not that fast. Some of it was a little wild. You know as actors you don’t get to do the really crazy stuff. But they had this thing where it looks like he’s driving but there was someone on top of the car that actually wheels for us. So when we hit the bus, we actually hit the bus, but not as hard. You have no control of the car. You can’t even brake. You totally trust this guy with your life or your head. That was pretty daunting.

MoviesOnline: When you were in school, did you like history or was there another subject you liked better?

DIANE KRUGER: I liked history, but I am not very good with dates, like I don’t remember dates. But I was fascinated with history. I am very well traveled and I make it a point to always go to the monuments and read up about it. If anything, I hope this movie would encourage that. It is one thing to read about it in a book and remember a date, but it is another to stand in front of Mt. Rushmore and see it. I just feel like people should travel more if they can.

MoviesOnline: We don’t think the Incas were ever near South Dakota.

DIANE KRUGER: How do you know?

MoviesOnline: Because of the other Indians.

DIANE KRUGER: (Laughs) I wouldn’t know. I wouldn’t know. We aren’t making a documentary I guess. But the Booth diary really existed. People don’t know that. There were really two Resolute desk coming from the H.M.S. ship. I didn’t know there were three Statues of Liberty. I knew there were two, but three I did not know. So there is some stuff that is actually correct and I find that cool. What if? Who knows.

MoviesOnline: Did you live in Paris when you read the script? Did you rush over and look at that other Statue of Liberty.

DIANE KRUGER: No. I knew. I had seen that. I did not look at the inscription but I had seen the Statue of Liberty in Paris. But I did not know about the third one. It’s cool.

MoviesOnline: Are you making up stories of what will be on Page 47?

DIANE KRUGER: I have no clue. I was like what the hell are we going to find? Seriously, I don’t know.

MoviesOnline: Do you think you and Nick are together for good at the end of this movie?

DIANE KRUGER: I don’t know. I don’t know. (Laughs)

MoviesOnline: Would you want them to be married if there is a third film?

DIANE KRUGER: No.

MoviesOnline: Would you like a child for the third one?

DIANE KRUGER: Oh Jesus! (Laughter). No. I don’t know.

MoviesOnline: Aren’t you currently filming “Mr. Nobody.”

DIANE KRUGER: Right. I just finished. Yeah.

MoviesOnline: Could you tell us a little bit about your work in that film?

DIANE KRUGER: It is the most interesting script ever. I don’t know if you are familiar with the director Jaco van Dormael, he directed “Toto the Hero” and “The Eighth Day.” He is a total visionary. Jared Leto plays Nemo Nobody. And you see him from being born until he is 120 and the last mortal man to die of a natural cause of death. You see him on his death bed, basically, in the future. And he remembers his life and the things he could have done, or should have done or did not do. Myself and Sarah Polley and a Vietnamese actress play three girls he grew up with. I play Anna who was his first big love. And I moved away with my parents to America and we lose touch and he is always looking for Anna and he has that memory of her. Sarah Polley is the girl he ends up marrying but she is really unhappy in the wedding. So the movie talks about no life is insignificant and whatever decision you make, you will encounter love, hate. It’s just the most beautiful, poetic script and Jared is quite something. He plays himself as 120. He has six and a half hours of makeup every day. When I left, they were still shooting, by the way.

MoviesOnline: What was it like filming now that he is a rock star?

DIANE KRUGER: It’s funny because we had the music fans, all black eyeliners and skinny pants, and then movie fans on the other side, and they sort of don’t like each other. Yea, it was kind of weird. It’s funny. And he won a European MTV award while we were filming.

MoviesOnline: So do we see your character later in the film? Or is it just in the beginning section? Does she come back into his life ever?

DIANE KRUGER: Yes. We reunite and then we also reunite later when we are about 50 in the future.

MoviesOnline: So what kind of arc did you have following this character?

DIANE KRUGER: Well my character is looking for him. I play a punk by the way which is really fun. So you see me also in different lives. He runs into me and I’m married to someone else, and I have children with someone else. And then we run into each other in the future. And we don’t really know each other but we feel like we do. It’s hard to explain.

MoviesOnline: Was it a good acting challenge?

DIANE KRUGER: Yeah. It was really fun.

MoviesOnline: What attracted you to that project? Was it the script?

DIANE KRUGER: It was Jaco for one. He is really a very well-regarded, sort of cult director. It’s a huge project for Europe. It’s partially financed by American money. But it has a $50 million Euro budget so it’s a huge movie. It has a year of post production. Six months shoot. So it’s coming out in 2009. I just felt for that kind of movie you needed that budget to make it look really good.

MoviesOnline: What kind of career do you envision for yourself as an actress?

DIANE KRUGER: Well, let me put it that way. I would much rather aspire to be a character actress than a movie star per se. You know. But I’m not saying it’s not good to be a movie star because it’s nice to be queen for a day. To be able to choose whatever you want to do. But I want to make films that I bleed for, that I feel passionate about, or tell a story that I really want to tell.

MoviesOnline: You were talking about being a character actress and a movie star, what was it like working with Helen Mirren who seems to be both.

DIANE KRUGER: What is nice to see, and it is the same for Ed Harris who is such a character actor, and I had worked with him just before on “Copying Beethoven” which was a real character piece. It’s such a great lesson. They take this kind of job just as serious as the little pieces. They are not snobbish about it. They know as well as everybody else that there is no greater prize or reward than an audience. Once you have an audience, they will follow you anywhere. Helen would say of herself she’s a working actress and I think that’s very valid.

MoviesOnline: Did she bring her Oscar to the set and let everybody touch it?

DIANE KRUGER: (teasing) Oh yeah, all the five Oscar winners. We had a little Oscar party. (Laughter)

MoviesOnline: Did she ever break out and do some of the Queen for you?

DIANE KRUGER: Well she has that English accent anyway. The first day on set everybody’s like “Helen Mirren's going to come to the set today.” Everybody learned their lines and were very serious about it. And then she comes on set and (with English accent) “Darling, I can’t remember any of these words. It is impossible to say.” (stops accent) So she put them on walls or on the table because she couldn’t remember. Then she would act toward... she was like “You, the center of the world” with whatever else she had to say. (Laughter) It totally took the pressure off.

MoviesOnline: Did you talk to any archivists as part of your research for the first film?

DIANE KRUGER: For the first time, yeah.

MoviesOnline: So you carried that over to this one?

DIANE KRUGER: I have no pretensions that I am half as smart or know half the things that Abigail Chase knows.

MoviesOnline: What was the difference doing this film?

DIANE KRUGER: To be honest I felt a lot freer. First of all I felt like they allowed me to be much more alive and funny and sort of feisty, much more so than the first one. I didn’t have to worry about establishing a character because it was already there. So I felt like I could just let loose.

MoviesOnline: Do you remember when you first became aware of how successful the first film was?

DIANE KRUGER: That’s the funny part. That’s where America and Europe are so different, because “It is a hit! It made $80 million. Wow! $180 million, whatever.” I was very happy about whoever got really rich from this movie.

MoviesOnline: So you’re saying Mickey wasn’t generous?

DIANE KRUGER: Oh well, not to me. I’m sure someone got a lot of money. But I’m not complaining though. If anything, I saw the movie for the first time with an audience. It’s the first time in my career I’ve ever had a commercial success. I can tell you as a person and as an actor, that changes everything. People were cheering. They were so happy and laughing. There is no greater reward than that.

MoviesOnline: Didn’t “Troy” make an impact?

DIANE KRUGER: I’m sure it did but maybe because it was with an older audience. These were children and teen-agers and then grandparents. You know it’s really nice to have great critics and have a movie that goes to the Academy Awards which I was lucky to have, but there’s nothing as rewarding as an audience. Really, it carries you. That’s who is going to come and see you. You don’t make movies for the N.Y. Times film writer.

MoviesOnline: How long before you got the phone call?

DIANE KRUGER: A year. It took a year. Because it was never anticipated. They were thinking about it. But they don’t know.

MoviesOnline: Do you know what you are working on next?

DIANE KRUGER: I am going to make a French movie next. I just wrapped “Mr. Nobody” three weeks ago. And then I will do this French-speaking movie.

MoviesOnline: What’s the name of that film?

DIANE KRUGER: “Pour Elle.”

MoviesOnline: How do you manage to keep a relationship going when you work so frequently?

DIANE KRUGER: It’s hard. You make it work. If you want to make it work, you can make it work. Someone has to make the effort.

MoviesOnline: What are your Christmas traditions and what are you doing this year?

DIANE KRUGER: This year I’m going to go home. I haven’t been home for two years. My mom made it pretty clear that if I don’t come home, I’m not a daughter anymore. (Laughter)

MoviesOnline: Germany? Is that home.

DIANE KRUGER: Yes. Yes. Paris is my home, but I was born in Germany and my family is still in Germany.

MoviesOnline: What is the best gift you remember ever getting?

DIANE KRUGER: Probably a model kitchen when I was a little girl.

“National Treasure: Book of Secrets” opens in theaters on December 21st.