I have mixed feelings about Alec Baldwin. I love him on 30 Rock, yet when I read any interview with him or mentally revisit the “rude, thoughtless little pig” incident, I get sick to my stomach. He can seem really abusive, sanctimonious, and douchey in print, or in taped messages to his daughter. But, yeah – brilliant comedic actor. Anyway, Alec gave a new interview to Men’s Health Magazine where he goes in detail about his career, and how it’s “over”. Alec claims that when his 30 Rock contract is up in 2012, he’s quitting the acting profession. Which means that I won’t have to have mixed feelings about Alec after 2012. I can just let my hate-on flourish, I suppose. Alec also talks about the infamous message left for his daughter (“I feel the consequences of that every day”) and how he recently broke up with his girlfriend of seven years (“I’d rather be lonely than wrong.”). Here’s more:
Alec Baldwin says he’s quitting showbiz after his “30 Rock” contract is up in 2012.
“I don’t have any interest in acting anymore,” the two-time Emmy winner from Massapequa, L.I., said in an interview for the upcoming issue of Men’s Journal. “Movies are part of my past. It’s been 30 years. I’m not young, but I have time to do something else.”
Baldwin, 51 and famously opinionated, has frequently mused about running for office. He has one more movie coming out: “It’s Complicated,” with Meryl Streep and Steve Martin, which opens Christmas Day.
Despite his critically acclaimed 1990s performances in “The Hunt for Red October,” “Glengarry Glen Ross” and “Miami Blues,” Baldwin said he has been unsuccessful.
“It’s a difficult thing to say, but I believe it: I consider my entire movie career a complete failure. I’ll tell you why. The goal of moviemaking is to star in a film where your performance drives the film, and the film is either a soaring critical or commercial success, and I never had that.”
He said he tried to quit his NBC show, a critical darling now in its fourth season, in 2007 after the humiliation of a nasty voice mail he left for his daughter – he called her a “rude, thoughtless little pig” – being made public.
“I feel the consequences of that every day,” he told Men’s Journal.
Baldwin, who has warred with ex-wife Kim Basinger over access to his daughter and wrote a book about parental alienation, says he considered suicide at the time. “I was going to put the hose in the most noxious of the cars I own, a Jeep, take some sleeping pills, and take a nice nap in the front seat of my car in the garage,” he said.
Baldwin’s battles with Basinger also led to a recent breakup with his girlfriend of seven years. “I don’t mind,” he said. “I’d rather be lonely than wrong.”
[From The New York Daily News]
Alec is giving this interview to promote his role in It’s Complicated, the film Meryl Streep is also promoting in Vanity Fair. Meryl and Alec play a divorced couple that might be reconnecting. The catch is that Meryl’s character is also dating Steve Martin. So it’s a romantic comedy for adults. I’d imagine that Alec and Meryl have a lot of chemistry together, and that they might even be a really hot onscreen couple. Personally, though, I want Meryl to do another film with Jack Nicholson. And Robert DeNiro. Those men can hold their own with her, and they seem to adore the hell out of her.
Alec Baldwin on the streets of New York on November 26, 2009. Credit: Pacific Coast News.
I loathe him every bit as much as I adore Meryl.
I say w00t to him quitting but I think he’s headed for politics and he keep mentioning my state. Blowhard!
I love this man… he has an amazing lucidity for being an actor.
This man has a screw loose somewhere. I’ve certainly always suspected it, but this interview cements it.
There was not a more gorgeous man alive when he was in “Beetlejuice,” but he and his family do seem to have some emotional damage going way back. It’s a shame, and here’s hoping he or Kim get that child some therapy.
I think he’s a good actor but I agree with Crash2GO2, that “Baldwin battiness” seems to be deep-rooted and far-reaching.
His screw is in a little tighter than the other boys (They have some sisters, don’t they?), but not by much. And I hope his “lonely than wrong” quip was just being “funny”, but I doubt it.
I’m falling more on the “I sort of like him” bandwagon.
Not to even closely excuse what a piece of crap he was for saying that to his daughter, but on some level, I can understand with his frustration with Kim the Nutbag, that he let his infamous anger get the best of him and he did something hugely stupid and hurtful to the one person he should have protected the most from that kind of crap that was between him and Kim. He’s going to, and should, feel those repercussions. I hope Ireland is getting something..therapy, whatever. Alec can be a pig, but her mother is really nutty too and isn’t blameless in this custody disaster.
That said, I’m remotely bummed if he quits acting. He’s funny in those odd, quirky roles that he’s probably competing with William Shatner for.
“I’d rather be lonely than wrong” – after his ongoing disaster with his ex-wife, I guess I can’t blame his bitterness. Too bad he let his girlfriend bear the brunt of his mistrust.
I used to really like him. But with the stuff that came out between him & Kim, it coloured my perception of him. Then his message to Ireland was made public, and that was the final straw. There’s something about him that gives me the impression of barely contained rage. I don’t know how else to describe it.
@ UrbanRube –
I think you’re right. All the Baldwin brothers have had problems with addictions and/or marriages, and one has to wonder what growing up in that family was like.
So I’m attempting to pin-point what exactly is inspiring such loathing.
The fact that he’s quoted as saying: “I’d rather be lonely than wrong”?
That has only minor relevance to his ordeal with his ex wife.
I can fully empathize with that reasoning as most men could.
You’d rather avoid situations in which you’re set up to be perceived as the bad guy.
Basically he’s saying he’d rather have things his way or no way at all, and in doing so, he’s accepting the consequences of his decisions.
That’s manly as shit, and respectable as hell. People make mistakes, but he’s willing to accept the consequences of his decisions. Not many people are willing to do that these days.
I wish him a happy retirement.
I don’t believe he will be done with acting. How do you quit a job that will pay you more than a million dollars for a few months work? His comment about his career being a failure does make him sound like an ungrateful douche. He sounds like he lives in a world of misery (of his own making).
I like Alec Baldwin. Unfortunately, he is really paying the price for being a celebrity in our 24/7 tracking of celebrities. I also like his ex-wife and wish she was a bit more sane. I agree that the daughter needs to be in therapy to get some good adult modeling for how to handle life.
I don’t think he will quit acting either. He said he was leaving 30 Rock awhile ago and then came back. He sounds depressed to me and like he should consider therapy himself.
Bingo, Bella—
“Barely contained rage,” is a perfect description.
I quite like him. Unlike so many others he seems able to own up to his mistakes – I respect that.
I like the quote he gave: “I’d rather be lonely than wrong.” He’s not sugarcoating anything or playing some PR game. I can respect that. What he said to his daughter wasn’t nice but I’m sure everyone has said something horrible one time or another in a fit of rage that they regret. Sometimes we hurt the ones we love most.
His view on his success is relative in his world. It’s like someone who is a doctor who may not be the best in their field and view themselves as a failure when compared to other doctors who are better. But other people may not see them as unsuccessful at all. People measure their success to others in the same field all the time.
He’s such a phenomenal actor that you can’t help but like/respect him. Robert DeNiro isn’t that pleasant to be around but at least he keeps his mouth shut.
Alec Baldwin in front of the camera is a lot easier to take than behind it. We can just shut him off, if need be. He’s so lucky Tina Fey found the role of his lifetime and gave him a job!
I don’t think William Baldwin has had any crazy stuff in his life, has he? The problems that Daniel and Stephen have had, though, certainly put Alec’s in perspective.
I appreciate that Alec doesn’t say what people expect him to just because he is in the public eye.
And yes, there are 2 Baldwin sisters, but they aren’t in the entertainment industry.
Love him on 30 Rock and want to see the movie (love Meryl). In real life, he does seem to be wound a bit tight and have some issues.
I don’t see what was offensive about this interview. Saying you’d rather be lonely than wrong could simply mean that you would rather risk living a lonely life than selfishly stay with someone you know is wrong for you just so you can avoid being “alone.” I actually find that a very mature thing to say. Aside from the inexcusable incident with his daughter, he hasn’t done much to seem like a jerk, other than being overzealous at times about politics, but who in Hollywood isn’t like that. I
I can’t believe people are still referring to the answering machine incident. Move on already! I like Alec Baldwin….if he doesn’t want to get ridiculed, next time he probably should keep his future plans to himself!
Love Alec and as I said in reference to this interview on another site…
He seems to be genuinely down on himself (I dont see this as being a douche, but just depressed as Raven suggested)and his situation with his daughter was a private explosion following more than a year of painful custody battles where his nasty ex wife put up as many barriers as possible to stop him from seeing or speaking to his child.
I think he is completely brilliant in 30 Rock and hope that he doesnt give up on a long lasting career in comedic acting.
He used to be SO hot. Now he’s fat, old and ugly. And a total douche. Do not want.