If you can’t beat them, the old saying goes, join them. In Kevin Bacon’s case, that meant accepting the fact that Six Degrees by Kevin Bacon – the party game that asks you to link every famous actor to Bacon in six movies or less – has never gone away. So he embraced the phenomenon and founded SixDegrees.org in 2007, a charity whose efforts to fight hunger are being honored November 1 in New York City with an Award Humanitarian Harry Chapin (named for musician “Cat’s in the Cradle”).
And speaking of joining them, Bacon’s daughter Sosie Bacon – who starred in Paramount’s terrible hit Smile – is currently on his way towards joining his father as a horror movie icon. (Dad, you may recall, was in a number of creepy horror movies, dating back to the 1980s. Friday the 13th.)
The Hollywood Reporter chatted with Bacon, 64, to talk about his charity work, his daughter’s ascent and the bologna bread he was served on Jason’s first outing.
Thanks for taking this time with me. I understand you are very busy filming something right now
I’m working Beverly Hills Cop 4, that’s great. It’s been fun and I’m happy to be a part of it
Have you met Eddie Murphy or worked with him before?
This is the first time. So it’s very interesting for me. It was good.
What do you play in it, if I may ask?
I think I have to sort of keep that low.
Those movies are my whole childhood.
I tell you, every time I mention it to someone, they usually put a smile on their face.
Yes, that’s pretty big. But then too Footloose. You were also a huge part of my childhood, so you definitely deserve to go with Axel Foley.
(Laughter.) Thank you. Thank you.
Congratulations on being honored for your work with SixDegrees.org. Can you tell me about that?
SixDegrees.org is an organization that I founded a few years ago. I looked at Six Degrees by Kevin Bacon game. It’s silly, and it doesn’t seem to disappear. It’s like there was this hanging time. So I decided to take that concept and figure out how to give back to it.
We are mutually beneficial during the lockdown and the two organizations we are involved with are WhyHunger and NAACP Legal Defense Fund. WhyHunger is a great organization. They were started by singer-songwriter Harry Chapin, who is an amazing person. He died tragically. But before he did, he spent a lot of his time giving back. And more specifically about hunger. So we are very pleased to receive this award. It is a great honor.
What else is happening in the Kevin Bacon world? Kyra Sedgwick, how is your wife?
A few years ago – with my encouragement and making her upset about it – she decided it was time to direct. And the first thing she directed was a Lifetime movie called A girl’s storygot her a DGA nomination.
She’s a very, very good director. She has directed a bunch of different TV shows like now Grace and Frankie and City on the hill, that’s the show that I was on Showtime. And [she directed me in] a movie this past summer called Weird space. It was selected for distribution outside the Cannes Film Festival. We are very happy for that.
Do you enjoy being guided by her?
There’s a kind of old-fashioned idea that, “Oh, what’s that? What is your wife going to tell you to do? ” When I hear people react that way, I feel like, “Are we still in the 50s?” I mean, come on. We have a very good shorthand for the work we do. I am always happy to work with her.
And there’s another person in the household who’s pretty strong right now. Your daughter joins Smilespent three weeks at number 1.
You then. She’s great in the movie. She is amazing. We didn’t know she was actually interested in pursuing any kind of acting career after that. But when she finally, in her 20s, decided that this was what she wanted to do, she dropped out of college and moved to LA and really started doing all the right things. Beat the sidewalk, cross yourself behind you, and learn your lesson.
When she received this part [in Smile], even knowing how hard she worked, and knowing how good she is, when I watched the movie, I was just really surprised, not only with how amazing she is but how difficult the role is. to any extent, because it’s one of those parts where there’s no break. Usually you start and the character is pretty happy for at least 15 minutes or 20 minutes before things get horrible. But it’s a movie where the stress level is [insane]. I am very proud of her.
You’ve also been in a high-concept horror movie lately – Surname / Surname, sounds quite interesting and provocative. It’s interesting that you both work in the same genre.
In a strange way, we have a tradition of horror in our family. One of my first movies was my first movie Friday the 13th.
Of course. Amazing.
I was in Stir up the echo and Haggard man. Flatliners. I keep coming back in horror.
Vibrate.
Vibrate, the right. YES. We definitely have a favorite for it in our family. I wonder what it is, specifically. I think for an actor you’re looking for high stakes stuff – and that’s what horror gives you. It is always a radical life-and-death situation.
When you’re on the set Friday the 13thDo you know what will happen from that movie?
Not sure not. I’m done animal house, and I’ve done some soap operas. I was actually in a soap opera while I took a picture Friday the 13th. I’ve done a lot of theater in New York. I chose to live in New York, and indeed at the time, not the center of film and television production. There really isn’t much of that happening.
And Friday the 13th is the definition of a low budget indie. What it was created for. I was in Blairstown, New Jersey. I once had to take a public bus to a bus stop in the middle of a country road, and someone from the set would drive out to pick me up. I mean, it’s the closest transportation they have.
Literally, I remember we would take a lunch break, and they would lay out slices of bologna and cheese and white bread and French mustard and that would be our lunch.
You get better food in prison.
YES. I didn’t look at it, “Wow, this is going to be a horror masterpiece.” And I don’t know how much it will spawn Friday the 13ththey are done.
So many. But there’s something about the first one that you just can’t beat. Well, Kevin, thank you very much. I’m really excited about Beverly Hills Cop 4. I hope you stick bananas in everyone’s ducts
(Laugh.) Right.
The edited interview is long and clear.
